After the Rains
by BitterEloquence
Summary: A night of lost keys and falling rain reveals far more then either Kakashi or Iruka ever expected. Neither were prepared to face the truth that stared them in the face and neither dared back away. Kakshia xIruka COMPLETE
1. Of Lost Keys and Rain?

Title: After the Rains

Author: Bitter Eloquence

Pairings: Kakashi/Iruka

Notes: Brought upon by Crack Bunnies that were brought to life with the sudden realization I had that no one ever seems to use doors in Konoha in the Naruto Fandom.

Reviews: Please? I've got a closet full of Plot Bunnies that will chew through the wood in order to devour what is left of my sanity and brain.

Ye Olde Disclaimer: I'm not Japanese. I'm not rich. Do you really think I could have created something as kick ass as Naruto? I didn't think so. Please don't sue because all you'd get are my rabid plot bunnies and maybe a night shiny penny if you were lucky.

This couldn't be happening. This just couldn't fucking be possible! Still not believing his own hands or mind, Iruka furiously patted around his pockets once more in search of a familiar jangle of keys. He felt the weight of his wallet, the kunai in his pouch and the sharp prick of shuriken but no keys. And it wasn't like they were hard to find either! Considering the sheer amount of keys he had to hold as a teacher and one of the senior chuunin in the mission room, he knew it shouldn't be that bloody hard to find them.

But sure enough, they weren't there and Iruka was suddenly faced with an embarrassing situation. A wet and mortifying situation actually, because as the bemused and flabbergasted stood outside his firmly locked and secured apartment, the light drizzle that he been hounding him home decided that then was the perfect opportunity to start raining cats and dogs. The dark-haired man was soon adding wet and miserable to his ever-expanding list of things he was feeling. Annoyance was first and foremost on his mind however as he glared up at the pouring sky. In answer, the clouds were suddenly lit up bright for a moment as lightning flashed the sharp crack of thunder following.

Nope, Iruka was not a happy chuunin and with a growl, he started to slough through the curtain of rainwater falling off the roof of his building when he began to walk around, testing the windows as he went along. In a village filled with shinobi, it had never ceased to amaze Iruka how many of them left their windows unlocked or open. To the academy teacher, this had seemed downright foolish and idiotic. Why would you leave your windows open so that the enemy could slip in during the night to slit your throat? Well now, he was getting his answer. He didn't know what scared him more, the fact that people were so careless with securing their houses, or the fact that the elite ninjas of Konoha lost their keys enough that it warranted such precautions!

Having defied a certain slippery death by crawling along the drainpipe to get to his balcony, Iruka tried the doors there with a miserable and wet look on his face. Why hadn't he thought to carry his lock-picks with him today? It was certainly a set of tools that a shinobi could use, but unfortunately, Iruka was not used to being locked out of his own apartment and thus had never thought he'd need it on an everyday basis. By now, the dark-haired man was shivering and chilled to the bone thanks to the steadily falling deluge and he glared at door on his balcony which stubbornly remained locked despite the flash of temper in chocolate-brown depths. A string of curses fell from Iruka's lips then, words that no schoolteacher should know and he glared at the wall with helpless frustration. Where the hell could he have left his keys? Another helpless pat down of his pockets as that annoyed look of consternation filled the chuunin's face once more. It was…..embarrassing, dammit! What self-respecting ninja got locked out of their own apartment?

"This can't be happening….." Iruka groaned and reached up to grab the collar of his flak jacket. The worst part was, he couldn't exactly go ask someone for help because then he'd never hear the end of it! Dark eyes narrowed fractionally as he all but heard the gossip floating around the mission room the next day if it got out that he had locked himself out of his apartment and lost his keys. Oh, they would have a field day with that. Because Iruka; despite not being overly powerful or spectacular in anyway, was damned meticulous and observant about such things. Having to keep troublemakers like Naruto and now Konohamaru in check with an iron fist had given him eyes in the back of his head according to rumor and the ability to find just about anything from a lost kunai to a misplaced child on their field training. So the fact that he'd lost something as noisy and obvious as his keys was downright preposterous!

He really didn't have much of a choice, he could either find some place semi-dry to spend time in until the rains let up and wait for morning so he could search for the missing keys, or he could break out one of the windows. To a shinobi who took great pride in his abilities, no matter how limited and unspectacular they might be, the idea of breaking out the window to his own home just seemed….wrong. Iruka liked to think of himself as a rather levelheaded person for the most part. Sure, his students would tell a completely different story but that that didn't matter. No, he liked to think he was calm and rather collected for the most part but this was driving him nuts. Of course, the chill crawl of water down his spine that served as a bitter and taunting reminder of his current situation could have brought to mind just how utterly foolish this entire debacle was. Why did the Gods hate him? Whom had he pissed off in a former life to get this much bad luck in one night? He'd managed to all but run over Kakashi on the way home as he'd run through the rain. The fact that he'd forgotten his umbrella in the first place had left Iruka's mood sour and when the silver-haired Jounin had appeared out of nowhere, they'd both went sprawling into rain puddles.

Or rather, Iruka had ended up rump-first in a particularly chill puddle while Kakashi had been knocked back enough that he'd had to twist that lean form in an interesting manner to catch himself before he too joined to chuunin. That in itself should have proven to Iruka just how bad a turn his night was going to take. The papers he'd intended to take home to grade had gone flying and the smirking Kakashi had helped him gather them up. Over the past two years, they'd come to an….understanding. At first, Iruka'd had his doubts about the apathetic and rather lazy man and his lackadaisical teaching methods. Things had come to a head after Naruto had left to train for Jiraiya and Kakashi found himself without a team of gennin to train. The dark-haired man had wanted to blame Kakashi for Sasuke's seeming abandonment of their village and Naruto's leaving. Unfortunately, Iruka had been unable to draw up enough venom in his soul to truly blame the other man and they'd found an uneasy sort of balance between then in those first rough months.

They'd never been outright friends to say the least. Their personalities were simply too different really and it usually didn't take too long for Kakashi to say something in his bored tone of voice that just irked the fiery chuunin and Iruka would end up shouting at the silver-haired man. Oddly enough, Kaka

shi seemed to relish these outbursts of Iruka's, seemed to find them absolutely fascinating and he'd watch with the intensity of a raptor as the tanned man's skin grew hot and red with anger and embarrassment. It was something that Iruka just didn't understand but he'd never had the nerve or the presence of mind at the time to question the jounin on his odd behaviors. Not that Iruka could expect a strait answer out of Kakashi anyway. The man seemed to love his mystery almost as much as he enjoyed his Icha Icha Paradises series. Where Iruka could be almost obnoxiously polite for the most part, Kakashi was blunt in his reactions. The sardonic irony that colored Kakashi's voice at times was enough to set Iruka's teeth on end. Because no matter what, the man always seemed to know just what buttons to push to get the most desired reaction out of Iruka…usually an explosive one.

People who first met Iruka thought the polite and well-mannered chuunin to be a kind and almost meekly quiet person. People who truly knew Iruka knew that beneath that thin façade of affability lurked a quick temper and a loudly sharp voice that could strike fear in the bravest of students and some adults. Kakashi seemed to take great enjoyment in watching Iruka flare-up, grow flustered or just simply start tripping over his own words and feet in in the face of the jounin's teasing. No, to be truthful, Kakashi wasn't Iruka's favorite person despite the pleasant times they were capable of spending together. Was it even possible to spend half your time absolutely fascinated by another person only to spend the rest of the time fighting the urge to strangle said person with their own forehead protector? Even tonight, Kakashi had been all smiles and teasing words as he helped the flustered chuunin gather his paperwork. Sure, Kakashi could have just glared and walked on, but instead he'd knelt down in the muddy water along with Iruka to grab soggy and ruined paperwork. Kakashi was just like that however, odd and unpredictable. And dear Gods could the man get on his nerves! Almost as much as not being able to find his keys because all Iruka wanted to do right now was crawl into a shower and warm up for the next hour or so. It had been a long and tiring day and now he had to deal with this wet and coldly soggy problem.

Could this night get any worse? Truly, all that could make things worse was to have someone like Kaka-

"Having some problems, Iruka-sensei?" Drawled that all too familiar voice that had shivers of dread crawling up Iruka's spine as he looked heavenward. The look he sent towards the rain-choked sky was downright dirty and disgusted as he wondered once more just who he'd pissed off to get this….graced….with luck tonight.

"I was kidding about that part…" He muttered under his breath before turning to Kakashi. A forcibly cheerful smile curved his lips as he faced the jounin. It was a bit hard to appear cool and collected when one was soaked like a drowned rat but Iruka tried to pull it off all the same. "Hmmmn? Problems, Kakashi-sensei?" The chuunin asked innocently as he managed to scrounge up a smile that would have had his students twitching with uncertain dread. He always used this smile whenever he was skirting the edge of doing something really nasty and evil to them. Sufficing to say, Naruto had seen that expression more times then he cared to think of.

"Yeah, you looked like you were having some problems." Kakashi's one visible dark eye peered intently at Iruka as his eyebrow disappeared from view beneath his forehead protector. Ignoring the chill rain running down the edges of his umbrella, the Jounin was perched comfortably on the rail of Iruka's balcony with all the indolent grace of a cat. "Did you lock yourself out?" A slight flinch, a minor twitch betrayed the chuunin to the laughing jounin's obvious amusement as that masked man watched him intently. "Nasty night to do that too… how long have you been out here?" Dammit….there went any hope he had of trying to keep things quiet. Not that Kakashi was exactly known for being particularly open and revealing with his secrets.

"I umn…." What the hell was he supposed to say? Sure, he could try to lie to the jounin but that wouldn't fly very well at all so with a sigh and a long-suffering look, Iruka rubbed at his temple with a muffled groan. "I don't know where I lost my keys I'm afraid. I've looked all over the place but they're just not here."

Kakashi tsked softy and shook his head. "You've looked around the school? Maybe you left them there?" A slight shake of Iruka's head shot that idea right out of mid-air.

"No, because I was the last one in the mission room today and I locked up. So I know I had it when I left school."

"Where all did you go on the way home then?" A spark lit in Iruka's eyes then as he realized he had made on stop on the way home when the rain had gotten especially hard earlier.

"I stopped at Ichiraku for dinner, maybe it's there. Thanks, Kakashi-sensei!" All but trembling with anticipation, of course, it was probably cold; Iruka vaulted the rail of his balcony and jumped the distance to the front pathway with a lot more energy now. A disgusted look was given to the now ruined and sodden paperwork resting in the doorway and Iruka just left it. The rain continued to pelt down on his head as he walked towards Ichiraku but it didn't feel as cold now that he had a small sliver of hope. There was a chance he just might get a hot shower sometime tonight and that make Iruka a happy boy, dammit! There wasn't even an indication or a whisper of chakra as Kakashi appeared at his side with all the silence of a ghost or death itself. Iruka fought back a small jolt at the sudden presence of the jounin pressing so close and invading his personal space. Kakashi was all but glued to his side with a cheerful smile then as the jounin grinned happily down at the younger man. Iruka dully noted that the rain had stopped pouring on his head and he glanced up to see Kakashi's umbrella protecting them both from the downpour.

"I thought you'd gotten wet enough for one night. Shall we?" Iruka wanted to asked Kakashi just why he was doing this, but then remembered he'd have about as much luck at getting a strait answer out of the man as Sasuke'd had trying to pretend his league of fan girls didn't exist. Another long-suffering sigh and Iruka nodded. Kakashi just grinned happily once more and continued to walk all but glued to Iruka's side. In his mind, tonight couldn't get much better. He was sharing an umbrella with a deliciously rumpled looking Iruka, the person who'd he'd admittedly had his eye not so secretly on for a while. One would think the chuunin would have noticed already but Kakashi had decided that for such an intelligent and bright person, Iruka could be downright oblivious to some things. Oh well, that just gave him freer reign to get away with some of the things he wanted to do. While he couldn't exactly molest him in public…..yet….Kakashi settled for pressing his shoulder and chest into Iruka's back as they walked through the wet streets of Konoha.

"……thank you." Iruka's grudging reply could be heard as he hunched his shoulders defensively and fought to keep that smile on his face, this truly wasn't his night. Of course, considering his current mood, it was damned hard to look at the night in a positive light. It's not easy to pretend like you were not wet, cold and just generally miserable. And admitting that he was just wasn't an option when it came to Kakashi. The Copy-nin had always made Iruka feel like he was…lacking. How could this plain and utterly unspectacular chuunin ever hope to even compete in the eyes of the genius who'd graduated at five and become a jounin before Iruka himself had even gained gennin status? Kakashi was simply out of his league and he knew it. That was why he fought back the shivers trying to overcome his body as they walked towards the familiar light of Ichiraku. Pride could be a damned bitch when it wanted to be.

"You okay, Iruka-sensei? You look like your lips are going to turn blue." Kakashi peered at him with something that might have been a bland sort of concern on that masked face.

"N…No I'm fine, thank you. Let's go see if I left my keys here." And abandoning the umbrella's protection, Iruka sprinted the last few yards to reach the ramen stand. As the flaps shifted and moved, the old man behind the counter looked up with a weary look on his face. He'd been preparing to close up considering the rains and the ache in his bones. Upon seeing Iruka there however, his expression lightened just a bit and he offered an apologetic smile.

"Back already, Iruka-sensei? I'm afraid I just closed up for the night…." Iruka shook his head, displacing droplets of rain then as he rubbed the back of his head in an embarrassment.

"Oh no, I'm not here for ramen. I was wondering if you'd found a set of keys laying around somewhere. They've got a little plastic keychain in the shape of a bowl of ramen on them." Iruka could feel a flush creep across his cheeks then as he admitted to that and the stifled choke of laughter from behind him told him that Kakashi had heard that as well.

"No I don't remember that I'm afraid. Sorry, Iruka-sensei." A small shrug as the man tried to keep an amused look from crossing his face as well and with a sigh, Iruka bowed and inclined his head.

"I'm sorry for taking up your time, thank you very much." Ever polite and mannered, Iruka smiled faintly and slipped out of the stand to see that amused look gleaming brightly in Kakashi's dark eyes. "What?" He grumbled in a defensive tone of voice and the jounin just shook his head and grabbed his arm to tug him back under the umbrella.

"Nothing. Come on, let's get you out of this mess. There's not much more we can do tonight anyway." He wanted desperately to tease Iruka about the ramen bowl of a keychain on his missing key-ring but he'd save that for later. Then, without really waiting for a reply from the chuunin, he began walking towards his apartment, his grip on Iruka's forearm never loosening.

Nope, this just wasn't Iruka's night. But he allowed himself to get drug along all the same considering Kakashi was the one with the umbrella.

Oh well…it wasn't like Iruka's night could get any worse……

….right?


	2. A Knight in Shining Armor?

Author: Bitter Eloquence

Pairings: Kakashi/Iruka

Notes: Brought upon by Crack Bunnies that were brought to life with the sudden realization I had that no one ever seems to use doors in Konoha in the Naruto Fandom.

Reviews: Please? I've got a closet full of Plot Bunnies that will chew through the wood in order to devour what is left of my sanity and brain.

Ye Olde Disclaimer: I'm not Japanese. I'm not rich. Do you really think I could have created something as kick ass as Naruto? I didn't think so. Please don't sue because all you'd get are my rabid Plot Bunnies and maybe a night shiny penny if you were lucky.

------------------------------------------

Iruka's night had gotten worse…..

"Umn...where are we, Kakashi-sensei?" Iruka looked decidedly wary and uncertain as they found themselves outside of an apartment that was definitely not Iruka's. The jounin grinned beneath his mask, the expression mostly hidden save for the curving of that one visible eye into a happy crescent. One dark brow rose as the shorter man eyed Kakashi much as one would eye a particularly dangerous animal whose chances of attacking were unknown.

"We're at my apartment of course." Kakashi stated simply as he handed the umbrella to the suddenly flustered looking Iruka. The chuunin's eyes had bugged out a bit and he fumbled with the umbrella as Kakashi drew out his own set of keys and unlocked the door. A tiny flare of annoyance curled in Iruka's heart as Kakashi opened the door wide  
enough for him to slip in and the jounin flicked on a light that flooded the  
small entryway with a pleasant and inviting light.

"I err...I think I'm okay actually, Kakashi-sensei. I've taken up enough of your time as it is, please excuse-" Iruka found his way barred by a sleekly muscled forearm as Kakashi turned to look at him with a suddenly serious and dark eye. Even with most of his face  
hidden, the sudden intent and almost intimidating aura that pulsed from the jounin had Iruka fighting back a flutter of nervousness.

"Don't be stupid. You're locked out, soaking wet and it's going to get very cold tonight. I'm not going to let you spend the night outside where you'll get sick." Iruka's eyes narrowed fractionally then as he fought with his common sense on whether or not to pick a fight with Kakashi. The man's slightly heavy-handed methods irked him faintly and  
Iruka's lips parted to speak when a cool fingertip pressed into them.

He hadn't even seen Kakashi move but suddenly, that air-chilled finger laid softly across his lips, the warmth from them faint but still present. It didn't compare to the heat suddenly flooding Iruka's cheeks however as he jerked back in surprise. "Your lips are turning blue, Iruka-sensei. Don't be an idiot and come inside before all the heat escapes."

And with that, Kakashi all but yanked the shell-shocked Iruka inside so he could shut the door. "You need a shower and something warm to eat in that order." Still slightly befuddled, Iruka was a little slow on the uptake as Kakashi dictated what he was to do. When the chuunin didn't move, the silver-haired man knelt with a growl and started on the leg-wrappings. With the touch of Kakashi's fingers to his legs, Iruka snapped out of his daze and jolted a bit.

"I can do that!" In his haste to step away from those slender fingers, Iruka ended up smacking into the wall and he hastily started on removing his sandals. The jounin bestowed yet another flat expression upon him before climbing sleekly to his feet with all the lithe grace of a hunting cat or a wolf. His own sandals were removed to join Iruka's before he stepped up onto the hardwood floor led into the main part of the apartment. It wasn't particularly large or sumptuous but it seemed to suit the basic needs of a man who was used to spending most of his life outside and anywhere but at home.

"Bathroom's that way. You'll find towels in the cupboard and I'll dig up some clothes for you to wear." Kakashi steered Iruka towards the bathroom, the gleeful smile on his face hidden by the mask and those damp locks of silvered hair. Iruka shot him a mildly annoyed look over one shoulder and Kakashi just grinned cheerfully at him. "I'll have  
some warm food by the time you get out. Do you like soup or are you just a ramen kind of man." Amusement kindled in those dark eyes then, the faintest creasing at the corner betraying Iruka's amusement then as a smile curved the edges of his lips.

"I'm not Naruto. I don't eat ramen three times a day." Iruka snorted softly but allowed Kakashi to lead him to where the bathroom was. Before entering the bathroom however, Iruka paused and shot an unreadable look over his shoulder once more. "...thanks." With  
that, the door slid close. Kakashi's happy, stupid smile melted away to be replaced by one that was downright feline in nature. As he heard the water turn on, the lanky jounin walked away as he dug out a set of keys from a pocket in his flak-jacket.

They were tossed up in the air with a merry jingle and cling of metal, the small plastic ramen bowl on it flying through the air only to be snagged by a gloved hand. The smile that curved Kakashi's lips was downright devilish as he eyed those stolen set of keys. "No, thank you, Iruka-sensei." Those words were purred softly to himself as he stuffed them back into his pocket and walked into the kitchen to start on the soup.

A part of Kakashi reminded him that taking things was wrong. No wait...he was a ninja, that wasn't right. Getting caught at taking things that was not his was wrong! There was no moral dilemma there thankfully. So why had he taken Iruka's keys instead of returning them to the wet and soaking chuunin? He'd like to think he'd feel some  
shred of guilt if the man managed to get sick because he'd been trapped outside in the cold but Kakashi had doubts about that. They said that if you were an Anbu, you had to sacrifice the important parts of your soul like your conscience and humanity, something that Kakashi had learned at a young age to be all too true.

Perhaps that was part of the reason he found Iruka so fascinating, the man expressed his emotions so freely and fully. It was like watching the dust devils he'd seen in Wind Country. You never knew what direction it was going to flow but you were drawn to it all the same. Because they looked so harmless in their innocuous manner and seemingly harmless size, one never realized how dangerous they were until you managed to get touched by it; then you were sent flying through the air to land dazed and confused as to what had just happened. To a man like Kakashi whose heart and soul had to become cool and dark in order to survive, the easily riled chuunin burned like a flame.

Kakashi watched him in his joys and sorrows and felt envious of his freedom,  
of the sheer amount of life radiating from him. Much like a moth he was drawn to that flame even though there was a chance he was going to get burned once again. Iruka had burned him before yet he was still attracted to the scarred man.

It was driving him crazy that the chuunin seemed utterly oblivious to his plight too. Sometimes they were as friendly and intimate as old friends and other times, Iruka was short and hot with him. If the jounin hadn't been such an emotional retard, he would have recognized the fact that Iruka was nearly as unsettled by Kakashi as he was by  
the chuunin. The silver-haired man was so used to driving people away and keeping them at a distance that the habits of his past were ground in bone-deep and he often found himself saying something monstrously cold or flat without even realizing it. Then it was stated and he watched the light fade from those beautiful brown eyes only to be replaced by hot anger or rage…..then he felt like kicking himself.

All Kakashi really wanted was for Iruka to look at him and possibly see past the pervert and the bastard. Because if Iruka could do it...if Iruka, the man who'd seen past the kyuubi in Naruto to realize there was such goodness in the boy, then maybe there was some hope for Kakashi and his soul after all? Trying to shake off his somewhat dark  
thoughts, Kakashi turned his attention to making the warm soup for Iruka. His keen ears could hear the dark-skinned man in the shower as

the chuunin's feet squeaked along the tile or when Iruka fumbled with the shampoo bottle with chilled fingers to drop it...and the mental images that was brining up was affecting the jounin more then Kakashi was willing to admit.

He had been lusting after Iruka for a while now and he'd begun to think that he'd go insane from sheer frustration...well...that or kill someone, whichever came first. And who would really blame him in is poor hormone frustrated state for pouncing upon the chance to get Iruka home and wet...er...no, that wasn't right. Well….that wasn't the main reason he'd stolen the keys when he'd seen them laying in a puddle by Iruka's foot. That was a definite bonus but not the real reason. Nor was the slim chance that he would be able to sweep the chuunin off his feet and into his bed either...it made a lovely fantasy and one he'd relish for a while but the real reason had been he simply wanted to spend time with the skittish Iruka. And if he had to kidnap the stupid man without the chuunin realizing it, then so be it! Itwasn't like Kakashi was going to loose a minute of sleep over that.  
He'd buried his conscience and morals a long time ago and like that trite and old adage, all was fair in love and war.

Behind Kakashi, the shower cut off as Iruka found himself somewhat warmer and thankfully clean. The mud had been bothering him almost as much as the chill water to be honest. He'd found a towel in the cupboard like Kakashi had said and after ringing his hair to get the last of the excessive water out, the tanned man lightly dried himself off before wrapping the pale towel around his waist. A critical look was given to  
the mostly fogged and hazy mirror and Iruka looked himself over for any unseen wounds or scratches that he might have picked up while sloughing through the mud. As expected, he found a bruise beginning tocolor the backside of his arm near the elbow from where he'd smacked into a sharp rock in his embarrassing spill earlier.

Even in the fog-choked mirror, Iruka could clearly see the various scars covering  
his body, some old, some new. He was a warrior and had been so since childhood. It showed in his body and in the scars on his heart and soul. Each blemish held a story and a memory. Most were bitter and sad though some brought a smile to his face. None were quite as new or vicious as the one crossing his back however. The wicked line of  
scartissue slicing between his shoulder blades from where Mizuki's weapon had pinned him had a chill running up his spine when he caught sight of it in the mirror. He'd come close to death that day, closer then he had in years to be honest and was still mildly surprised at the detached sort of realization he'd been willing to accept his fate.

People said that when a person stares death down eye to eye, that is when you get to test their true mettle. That was when you get to see what they are truly made of. Of course, the people that said they didn't understand the way of the ninja, didn't know what it was like to be shinobi. A ninja could face death with each mission they take it was part of the risk of living the lives that they did. Obviously life-defying situations didn't create good people however because look at the psychopaths that had come from their own village. Orochimaru or Uchiha Itachi were not good men in any way shape or form. Sure, they'd  
stared death down but that didn't make them any less evil. So if you couldn't test the value of a person in their courage under fire, how did you determine if they were flawed or not?

A troubled look overcame Iruka's face then as he considered the dark trail of his thoughts. He'd thought he'd known Mizuki, had thought that he'd understood the other man….thought he'd known the gentle kindness of silver-haired man's heart. He'd been wrong about him just as he'd been wrong about a lot of people in his time. What if he'd done something more about the gathering darkness in Sasuke then just make note it and put it into his file? What if he'd actually tried to intervene and help the boy? Would he still be following the path he had chosen for himself? What of Naruto? There were too many doubts, too many questions that haunted his heart and robbed him of sleep.

It had been a year since Naruto had gone off to train with Jiraiya and it cut at Iruka's heart like a knife to not know how his young friend was doing. Naruto had become the little brother he'd never had and when the blond had left, Iruka had been forced to keep up a smiling façade of calm contentment. People had asked him how he felt about Naruto leaving, had tried to cheer him out of his 'non-existent' depression. That had been when Iruka had learned how best to mask himself behind that cheerfully bashful smile. Sure, inside his heart had twisted in his chest as it broke a bit more with the news of Team  
Seven's break-up and subsequent loss of two of it's members. But he hadn't dared let anyone else know that. Because if Iruka-sensei, dear sweet, levelheaded Iruka-sensei lost it, then surely they were all screwed, right?

He shouldn't have taken it as hard as he had actually. Iruka knew this yet it had still hurt; and with a frown, he stared to comb his fingers through those wet locks of dark sable hair. A teacher knew they were bound to loose some of their students. Whether it is to death's  
embrace or to something else, the life of a ninja was a harsh one. They died quickly and early save for the few who were tough and smart enough to survive. "Geh…stop it." He commanded himself with a scowl into the foggy mirror. Annoyance and self-disgust glinted there in Iruka's eyes as he glared at his own reflection and the sheer futility  
of his thoughts had his back stiffening with disgust. The chuunin wasn't sure why his mood was so morose right now. Perhaps because tonight had simply highlighted the sleeping fears he had about his own abilities as both a ninja and a teacher? Who knew... All Iruka did know was that if he stepped out of that door in his current state, Kakashi would pester him until he either snapped or stormed out of the apartment to escape the jounin's all too sharp and intuitive questions.

Resigning himself to facing Kakashi's somewhat odd and warped sense of humor, Iruka made sure the towel was tight around his waist before opening the door to the bathroom. Immediately, the cooler and less humid air in the rest of the apartment washed over him and he fought back a shiver before peeking out to look around for Kakashi. The other  
ninja glanced up from the grilled-cheese sandwiches he was cooking to grin at the hesitant looking chuunin. "You said you had some clothes?" All Kakashi could see of that wonderfully delicious form was that uncertain face and shoulders. Those dark strands of sable hair clung to Iruka's cheeks and neck in sleek tendrils that had Kakashi wanting  
to trace every inky line with his lips.

"I did?" A comical widening of that one visible eye and Kakashi rubbed the back of his head with his free hand. "I got distracted contemplating the woeful life of an egg and it totally slipped my mind…." He had not forgotten of course, but he wasn't going to tell  
Iruka that. If he had gotten clothes out for the dark-haired man, all Kakashi would have seen of Iruka would be that one brief flash of skin and that would have had the jounin pouting all night long. "I'm err…sort of busy right now just go in and grab something." A gesture of one pale hand indicated the dresser that lay in sight of the kitchen.

"You're going to be late to your own burial aren't you." The chuunin muttered to himself as he held the towel close with a cautious hand.

"Only if I can help it!" Came Kakashi's far too cheerful reply as he reminded himself not to drool too much when he watched the dark-haired man stalk into the bedroom. A feline grin of pure shameless contentment curved those masked lips as Kakashi slyly watched the pure moving beauty that was known as Iruka. Kakashi knew there truly was no hope for him when he came to the conclusion that all he wanted was to start at one end of the chuunin and work his way up as he tasted each and every inch of that tan and lean form.

"….Which drawer?" Iruka glanced over his shoulder to pin Kakashi with a curious look and he blinked in confusion. The look Kakashi had been giving him had been decidedly feline and predatory in nature. It left him feeling vaguely uneasy to be honest. Uneasy and….something else…something he couldn't put his finger on.

"Hmmn? Oh...the bottom one…." The silver-haired man had the presence of mind to wait until after Iruka had turned away to grin with devilish delight. Unbeknownst to Kakashi, his toast began to burn. The elite Copy-nin didn't notice however as he all but rubbed his hands together with gleeful anticipation as he waited for Iruka to retrieve the clothing. The chuunin was thankfully unaware of Kakashi's secret delight however as he knelt on the floor to eye the drawer. Even with Kakahi's permission, he wasn't very comfortable digging through someone else's drawers….especially Kakashi's! Who knew what he'd find in there…

The scent of charred bread finally reached Kakashi's nose and with a curse, he yanked the skillet from the stove with a caustic look down at the smoking remains of what was once supposed to be grilled cheese. He poked at the sandwiches in a testing manner only to see just how charred the one side of the bread was. Ehhhh….who ever died of extra-carbon? Seeing that Iruka was woefully indecisive, Kakashi abandoned the ruined food and walked silently up behind the chuunin. As Iruka turned to speak, he found himself looking at Kakashi's knees and blinked in surprise before peering up at the jounin who now towered over him. "Umn…Kakashi-sensei?" An unreadable look flashed through the Copy-nin's eye then, that one visible orb gleaming with many secrets as he stared in fascination at the beautiful sight at his feet.

And with that, he felt his tenuous control snap.

With the grace of a panther, Kakashi knelt down in front of Iruka and a pale hand reached up to tangle in those chilled and damp locks of rich sable. Confusion filled Iruka's face as he stared up at the jounin in open befuddlement. Kakashi didn't even seem aware of that  
baffled look as he moved closer, his hand curling at the base of Iruka's neck. The tanned man finally seemed to realize the danger he was in as the jounin tilted his head back to meet that suddenly hot and desire-filled dark orb. "I think I should do this while I still  
have you held captive." Came that mysterious murmur then and the wariness curling to life within Iruka sprung to full alert as the silver-haired man lowered his cloth-covered lips to the warm tiers that all but begged to be kissed. The strong and unmovable grip of those pale fingers in his hair held Iruka trapped as Kakashi kissed him. Not that he was moving of course. Actually, he was pretty well frozen in place as the sluggish crawl of his thoughts slowly started to trickle into his brain.

The fact that he hadn't been socked into next Tuesday delighted Kakashi to no end and Iruka should have known better then to give even an inch with the perverted jounin. Because if you gave Kakashi an inch, he'd take a mile. Having met no real resistance, the  
silver-haired man slanted his lips across the chuunin's with a mental cry of dismay at finding his way blocked by his own mask. He wanted to tastethose soft lips that hung parted with shock beneath his. The damp warmth of Kakashi's breath seeping through the thin material as he groaned softly into the kiss seemed to awaken Iruka however and the  
sensei shoved Kakashi back then with a gasp.

Kakashi also learned that Iruka had a wicked left-cross as the chuunin punched him across the jaw for his troubles. "What the hell was that!" Iruka it would seem; was trying to see how many shades of red he could turn as he scrambled to his feet. He clutched his towel frantically almost as if he expected Kakashi to pounce him and eyed  
the fallen jounin with a wide-eyed and panicked look. Kakashi sat back on the ground and massaged his jaw with a faintly menacing narrowing of that one visible dark eye.

"That, Iruka-sensei was called a kiss. Are you sure you should be teaching kids if you don't even know the basics of the birds and the bees?" Now deep down, Kakashi knew better then to tease Iruka when he was riled up like this but he simply chose to ignore that and as the chuunin's eye's widened in shocked outrage, he simply grinned that stupid jester's grin and prepared to move. Sure enough, Iruka, driven a bit farther then his normally logical brain was capable of comprehending had moved to attack the seated jounin with an enraged growl. Kakashi's hands formed seals almost faster then Iruka's eyes could keep up. "Kagebunshin no jutsu." Iruka's eyes widened then as the jounin replicated himself even as he evaded the wrathful chuunin's punch. Despite having heard the words, the chuunin saw no new Kakashi-clones and that could only mean he really was in trouble. With a laugh, Kakashi grabbed onto Iruka's wrist and yanked him off balance by pulling the other man into his chest. Those strong hands moved to grab both wrists and try though he might Iruka was unable to break the jounin's hold. It wasn't surprising considering the differences in their strengths but all the same. It was….galling…..

"Are you going to calm down now?" Kakashi asked mildly, that single visible dark eye gleaming curiously down at the flushed and angry Iruka. He had to move his leg out of the way when the chuunin moved to step on his instep and with a sigh, he just wrapped his arms about Iruka from behind, trapping the other man's hands and arms to his own  
chest as the silver-haired man stood carefully with the flailing and struggling Iruka  
squirming the entire way. "Careful, you're about to loose your towel."

No one could ever accuse Kakashi of being a nice person. He had his own sense of personal honor, but it just didn't tend to coincide with what most other people viewed as right and wrong. Of course, Hatake Kakashi was not above using complete and utter mortification to get his way either.

At those chillingly mild words, Iruka froze in his struggles and uttered a highly un-masculine squeak as he went as limp and still as a dead fish in Kakashi's grip. The aforementioned towel was just barely clinging to lean hips, the wet folds of terrycloth having been untucked in a dangerous manner to hang precariously crooked about  
Iruka's hips. Mortification glowed almost as brightly in those velvety dark eyes as his cheeks and he tried to yank a hand free to keep it from falling completely off. Kakashi chuckled quietly to himself as the enraged chuunin went still. If he were to be honest with himself, he'd acknowledge the fact that this was far too much fun. Well...for him at least, Iruka didn't seem to be appreciating the joke all that much because as some of the embarrassment began to drain from him, Iruka turned his head to glare hotly up at Kakashi.

"Let me go." He managed; his voice dropping to near sub-zero temperatures then as he tugged at his hands, trying to uncross them from his chest so he could grasp for last slipping bit of decency he had to protect himself from a professional pervert like Kakashi. The silver-haired jounin was very careful to keep his head to the side of Iruka's lest the unpredictable man decided to snap his head back in an attempt to break the jounin's nose. Of course, this also presented him with the perfect opportunity to breath in the delightful mixture of scents rising from Iruka's heated and flush skin. Kakashi could smell the  
faint trace of his soup on Iruka's skin and the breath of scent from the shampoo Iruka had used when he nuzzled the delicate skin beneath the chuunin's ear.

When mingled with the rich hints of spices and musk that made up the dark-haired man's already spectacular scent, it had the jounin tightening his grip reflexively about Iruka. There was something decidedly erotic about smelling his shampoo and the scents he was used to mingling with Iruka's; it almost made him think that Iruka was wearing him and that had heat pooling dangerously low in Kakashi's belly. Only years of iron-willed control and practice kept his lust in check then and he closed his eyes to simply enjoy this stolen moment. "Let go of me, Kakashi-sensei….."

Iruka wasn't comfortable with the sensations that were stirring within him. It was making him face things he was far more comfortable not facing and he tried once more to tug himself away from Kakashi's grip. There was no violence in his movements however and it had the Copy-nin raising his face from the crook of Iruka's neck to peer at the chuunin  
with an odd look on his face.

"I want to but I can't….." Came that husky whisper then, the unreadable look in that one visible eye strangely hazed and almost soft. Iruka was used to seeing sharp cynicism or an apathetic flatness to on Kakashi's face and seeing that unnamable emotion had him almost as uncomfortable as having the jounin's arms wrapped around him. Iruka  
was only able crane his head around to a certain angle in order to catch sight of  
Kakashi but what he saw didn't exactly calm his nerves. For a long moment, the two men stood there still and silent.

The tension building between them was thick and palpable in the air and it had Iruka's breath catching in his throat. This was ridiculous really, he wasn't some star-eyed kunoichi who was supposed to loose his head and swoon  
at the feet of some debonair shinobi. For one thing, he wasn't female and for another, Kakashi was anything but debonair. In Iruka's opinion, grabby and perverted suited him a lot better at this particular moment!

Kakashi smiled to himself as he watched the play of emotions across the chuunin's face and in those expressive dark eyes. Shock was foremost on the surface of those chocolate pools but he could also see confusion, surprise and something else…something that had Kakashi's heart lightening a bit.

It was desire, albeit a confused and befuddled sort of desire but desire all the same and Kakashi wasn't one to look a gift horse in the mouth. Iruka's scar was a good way to decide his mood, he'd decided. If it was pale and stark against his face, he was angry but if it turned as red and hot as the rest of hia face, Iruka was dying of mortification in that moment.

The scar was bright red at that moment, Kakashi was happy to note.

"Don't say such nonsense." Iruka growled and tried to elbow Kakashi. And much to the chuunin's surprise, he felt his sharp limb dig into the jounin's vulnerable ribs. Who knew who was more surprised, Iruka in the fact that he'd managed to land a blow on the elite ninja or Kakashi in that Iruka had managed to catch him right in the diaphragm, thus driving all the air from his lungs for a moment. Iruka was gifted with the bug-eyed looked of shock that was almost comical on the jounin's normally passive features and he tried to escape once more only to get grabbed back into that lean and hard form.

"See…." A soft pant for breath as Kakashi heaved those words out and adjusted his grip to make sure Iruka couldn't repeat that move. "That's why I can't let you go. You'd probably kill me." Those words had a slightly menacing narrowing of dark eyes then as the sable haired man glared dangerously up at Kakashi.

"Keep this up and I will." The chuunin growled softly and Kakashi's eye curled upwards into a more familiar affable look.

"Ahhh, there's the fiery Iruka-sensei we all know and love. Promise not to kill me if I let you go?"

"I promise." Iruka drawled then, a note of dangerous sarcasm filling his voice as the chuunin tried his best to look intimidating. He didn't do a very good job of it apparently because Kakashi just grinned like an idiot and slowly let his arms fall. In that moment,  
Iruka spied the forgotten clone walk out of the bathroom with what could only be his clothes bundled in his arms. Shock had Iruka's jaw dropping then, the sight of the clone cheerfully waving at him with its stolen bundle of clothes before darting from sight had a pole-axed expression crossing the poor bedraggled chuunin's face.

"H…Hey!" Iruka made a move to chase after the other Kakashi only to have his wrist captured in a steely grip and he whirled back to Copy-nin with another wrathful look on his face. "What the fuck is your problem?" He swung again and the impact of his fist hitting Kakashi's hand had pain jarring down his arm as the jounin's pale fingers curled tightly around his own in a grip that was just a shade this short of being crushing. Pain had Iruka's eyes narrowing as a grimace threatened to overcome him but he fought it back. Kakashi's face was oddly grim then and sad, the joker having melted away to reveal the deadly potential of the famous Sharingan Kakashi.

That clenched fist was forced downwards with a smoothness of ease that made it almost appear as if Iruka wasn't even resisting. The differences in their strengths was terrifying and a curl of fear slowly flickered to life in Iruka's heart. "Stop this, Iruka-sensei. I'm not going to harm you so please stop trying to attack me." Kakashi's voice was cool and devoid of emotion, the lack of light in that one visible eye chilling in its starkness. And as quickly as he'd grabbed Iruka's hand, Kakashi's fell away to leave the chuunin free of  
his grip.

"Then what the hell do you call this?" Feeling like a trapped and cornered animal, Iruka backed away from the grim-faced Kakashi until he felt the sharp bit of the dresser press into his lower back. A hand had reflexively come up to rub at his aching fingers though even through the haze of anger, Iruka thought he saw a flash of…guilt? Sorrow? Some unnamed emotion flash across Kakashi's face before he looked away.

"I'm trying to keep you safe from yourself. If you'd gotten your clothes back you'd have just rushed back outside and gotten sick or something." It hurt. Why did it hurt so much? Pain was something Kakashi was used to feeling, something he'd learned to control, to channel to his advantage on the field. For a shinobi, pain could be your friend. It kept you sharp and alert, it let you know that you were still alive and that there was still some soul left in you. Physical pain he could deal with but this…this was something unfamiliar and he didn't particularly care for it.

"I don't understand you. Why can't you just come out and say what you mean instead of playing these games…." Iruka suddenly felt…exhausted. Emotionally, physically, it didn't really matter. As if that last burst of anger had drained his emotional reserves, his shoulders hunched and he carefully tucked the towel back around his waist with a  
sigh. "I don't understand you…" Those words were sighed softly, almost inaudible even. It was only Kakashi's keen sense of hearing that allowed him to pick out those quiet words.

"Yeah well….I don't understand you either so we're even." The jounin stalked over to Iruka and it was only the chuunin's sense of pride that kept him from retreating as the silver-haired man reached around him to gain access to the middle drawer of the dresser only to pull out a pair of drawstring pants. "Get dressed and then get something to  
eat, Iruka-sensei. I imagine my toast is completely beyond ruined at the moment." The joking light had left Kakashi's face and he seemed…tired perhaps? Iruka couldn't gauge the man's expressions very easily unfortunately because of the mask and his mysterious nature so all he could do was watch the taller man walk back towards the kitchen. Kakashi paused at the doorway of the bedroom and shot a look over his shoulder. "Just promise me you won't try to go out there tonight? I'll behave myself but I don't want you to make yourself sick just because you're disgusted by my presence." With that, the  
silver-haired jounin stepped out of the bedroom to give Iruka his privacy.

"……I'm not disgusted by your presence." Whether Kakashi could hear him or not was uncertain and Iruka wasn't too sure he wanted the jounin to hear him anyway.


	3. Soup, Kisses, and Pakkun?

Title: After the Rains: Chapter Three

Comments: Almost done! Another chapter or so…dum dum dum….no lemon yet though some strong R for descriptive nummy yaoi-ness.

Disclaimer: You'd think that they'd accept gumballs since this is a kid's show but noooooooo. I'm still not the owner. Would you like a gumball?

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It was a full five or ten minutes before Iruka was brave enough to actually step back out of the room. Kakashi had made himself scarce in the meantime as he recreated the burned grilled cheese sandwiches and finished making the rest of the food.

Back in Kakashi's room, Iruka paced back and forth like a caged panther, his footfalls silent upon the ground as he fruitlessly tried to walk off the tension running through him. Uncertainty had his mind in chaos, confusion left him a bit weak-kneed and fearful. Not because he was afraid of Kakashi trying to attack him or anything but rather because he was afraid he would like it.

Those rich and expressive dark eyes gleamed brightly with puzzlement as the scar-faced chuunin nibbled on his lower lip and made yet another turn in the small space of Kakashi's bedroom. The tanned man had pulled on the pants Kakashi had given him though he'd yet to get up the gumption to go digging through the jounin's closet in search of a shirt and when he peeked his room out the room, Kakashi turned to him with a grin curling that one dark eye.

There had been no sound, no indication that the chuunin was moving around but the silver-haired man seemed to sense him all the same and Iruka felt his cheeks heat once more with a blush. "Come have a seat, dinner's ready." As if nothing had happened, Kakashi started spooning

the odd-looking soup into bowls. Iruka eyed it warily, taking in the oddly colored broth and noodles with a raised brow. He was tempted to mention that he'd eaten already but that would have been rude so he merely kept his peace and watched the chunks of what looked like

chicken floating in the broth

"What kind of soup is that?" Intrigued, the chuunin stepped out of the room to approach Kakashi so he could get a better look at the soup.

The masked man smirked to himself as he granted Iruka a mischievous wink.

"Something I picked up along the way. It's not ramen but it's not bad either." That playful look had Iruka looking wary once more and the dark-haired man just shook his head before moving around Kakashi in the hopes of helping him with the food. A swift forearm blocked his

way as the silver-haired jounin pinned him with a look, "I've got it, why don't you go sit down." A curious look around Kakashi's apartment had Iruka raising an ironic eyebrow.

"Where?" To be truthful, Kakashi didn't have much in the way of furniture. He didn't have a table to sit at aside from an end table near a battered-looking recliner situated near a bookshelf glowing with obnoxious orange covers. Iruka's eyes widened as he realized just

what Kakashi had sitting there in plain view and his jaw fell open with shock. Kakashi grinned to himself and waited for the chuunin to explode.

"You have those out in open sight! What if Naruto had come over here you pervert!" It was always fascinating for Kakashi to watch those dark eyes grow hot and flashing with outrage and he had to fight to keep from doing something he'd regret like grabbing Iruka once again to kiss him breathless. As much as he liked watching the flash of temper in Iruka's eyes, he was curious to see if those expressive depths would grow hazy and dazed with passion or perhaps hot and wild with need.

An uncomfortable thought indeed and Kakashi cleared his throat softly as a minute shiver ran through him. That one taste he'd had of Iruka had not been enough to satisfy his craving, had not been enough to take the edge off his hunger for the chuunin. If nothing else, it made it sharper and thus it wore away at Kakashi's control.

"Considering I've never had them over and I never intended to, I think we're fine." The silver-haired jounin purred with another curve of that one dark eye. Iruka hmphed softly and he wandered back into the living area with a sway of those still wet and clinging dark strands.

"Bad enough he's off with that person" The chuunin muttered under his breath and eyed Kakashi's couch warily. Was that hair on it? The poor thing looked like it was on its last legs and there were a few stains that had the dark-haired man deciding that ignorance truly was bliss.

His decision made, Iruka settled gingerly on the floor and Kakashi carried a tray with the soup and sandwiches on it to settle next to the dark-skinned man. "Where are my clothes, by the way?" A mildly testy note entered Iruka's voice as he eyed Kakashi from the corner of

his eye before turning his attention down to the soup being presented to him.

"They're being washed, don't worry about it." Kakashi had the grace to look a bit sheepish then as Iruka glowered at him from beneath a dark fringe of sable hair.

"You stole my hair tie too..." Kakashi was well aware of this and in his personal opinion, Iruka looked downright edible with his hair free and loose around his shoulders.

"They'll be done in a few hours so eat your soup." Those pale fingers brushed against Iruka's darker ones as he handed the soup over to the other man. It was definitely odd looking to say the least with its unusual yellow color. It was not like miso soup with its often silty layers and he poked at the spoon with his pinky only to garner a laugh from Kakashi for his childish action.

"Relax, it's not going to bite you, I promise." Kakashi shook his head, those gravity-defying locks of silver hair not even twitching as he picked up his own bowl of soup. Iruka's eyes widened then and he hastily looked away, those dark eyes training anywhere but at Kakashi.

The jounin was tempted to tease Iruka about that but he didn't. The fact that the chuunin had looked away troubled him? Was that what he was feeling? Didn't the man realize just how rare it was for the jounin to let anyone even into his apartment? Into his life? It was vaguely irritating actually and Kakashi wolfed his soup down as swiftly as he usually ate his food. "I don't mind you know..." The jounin muttered then, catching Iruka's attention as he moved to take that first sip of the soup.

"Eh?" The spoon paused inches from Iruka's lips as he peered at Kakashi through those dark bangs. It was Kakashi's turn to fidget then as he shifted fractionally. It was barely even noticeable but to the trained eye of a ninja, it was a telling sign.

"I didn't mind if you saw it." Why was it suddenly so hard to meet Iruka's eyes? He was Sharingan Kakashi yet he found it all but impossible to force himself to look at the suddenly startled looking chuunin. "Look. I like you and I'm attracted to you so some time or

another I'm going to want another kiss and have you burst into a fit of giggles at seeing my face."

Kakashi was not one to mince about words it would seem and he was not one to be hesitant when he wanted something. Unfortunately, his forwardness seemed to break Iruka because the chuunin just sat there with a pole-axed look on his face.

The spoon fell back to the soup with a clatter and a splash of broth. The mask over Kakashi's throat shifted a bit and bobbed as he swallowed nervously and watched Iruka's every reaction with quiet intentness. The scar had gone pale with Iruka's face but then grew pink with color as he flushed brightly and ducked his head shyly before clearing his throat.

"You don't waste any time, do you?" Came that faint whisper as Iruka studied the trembling ripples in the soup and how it had slashed across the oddly toasted bread next to it. Kakashi hadn't expected mad proclamations of love but some hopeful return would have been

appreciated. Instead, Iruka's quiet words had a chill settling in the jounin's heart and he felt the gathering tides of dread running through him.

"Look, just think about it, okay? I...I know I probably shouldn't have done that earlier and maybe I'm completely off here but I thought I felt something from you as well when I kissed you." Iruka flinched as if he'd been struck and his face grew even brighter if possible."Is it really that terrible to consider?" Kakashi's voice held a decidedly wry note and he smiled bitterly from beneath the dark mask covering his face. Once more, Kakashi found himself thankful for the

dark fabric and the slanted forehead protector that hid his face from view. It kept people from being able to guess what he was thinking and kept them from seeing through the shallow facade he felt he often times presented to the world. At the moment, it kept Iruka from realizing just how deeply his rejection cut. He wasn't the type to try and laugh this off however so he simply sat there and fought the urge to squirm.

"It's not that..." Iruka finally whispered; his voice quiet and subdued as it filtered through the thick curtain of his hair and bangs where it flowed down into his face and across those bare shoulders.

Those quietly uttered words caught Kakashi's attention however and that one dark eye trained upon the younger man. He'd fallen back upon his welcoming and comfortable shield of cynicism and sharp wit and he eyed the blushing Iruka with a gleam of something dangerous in that dark orb.

"Then what is it, Iruka?" His words were harsh and as tense as his shoulders as he sat there slouched against the couch. The scared chuunin was more sensitive to Kakashi's mood than the jounin would have been comfortable with. However, a tanned hand extended to lay

softly on the dark fabric of Kakashi's shirt. He'd lost his flak-jacket somewhere along the way and had yet to change out of his uniform.

"You're asking a lot, Kakashi. And you're just dropping this into my lap without giving me any time to even think about things."

"What's there to think about? You either return the sentiment or you don't. It's not exactly a tough call there, Iruka." Sarcasm. Oh, sweet sarcasm his friend, how it had kept the pain away in the past and would not doubt shield him from it in the future. But this time it just didn't have the same effect because he could feel the burn of tense hurt curling in his stomach and upsetting him even further. What was it about this guiles man that endeared him to him so much. Without

even realizing it or trying, Iruka had managed to worm his way into the silver-haired man's heart, thus putting him into a position only few people had ever been in. He was in the position to hurt Kakashi and that made the jounin downright antsy to be honest.

"It's not that simple for me." Iruka protested quietly as his lips became a thin and grim line. "Half the time I want to kick your ass for the stunts you pull."

"That's just my lovable personality." Ever the witty one, Kakashi couldn't resist putting in his two cents and all he earned for his troubles was a narrow-eyed look from Iruka.

"Are you done?" The 'I'm so innocent' look Kakashi gave him did little to reassure the chuunin as his lips quirked up in a grim smile.

"You're extremely frustrating you know that? You come into my life and make things chaotic when I've got everything nice and orderly. I don't like disorder in my life..." Pale fingers curled a bit into a fist at Kakashi's side then before those tanned fingers slid down his sleeved arm to curl atop the jounin's hand. "I am interested but I'm also afraid I won't be able to keep up with you." Iruka gained the dubious honor of being one of the few people to truly surprise Kakashi and his

half-masked gaze flew up to meet the chuunin's warmly smiling eyes as that one wide orb stared at him. It was Kakashi's turn to be wary then and it kindled in that visible gaze when he looked solemnly into Iruka's eyes.

"What are you trying to say, Iruka?"

"Nothing. Let's just see how things go, hmmn? You're known for being able to think on your feet, right? We'll make it up as we go along." The wry smile that curved Iruka's lips was oddly charming and the jounin nodded slowly before an answering smirk curved his lips. His

hand rose slowly then to cup Iruka's face in a soft grip, the warmth from his hand hot against the chuunin's already burning cheek. Kakashi slowly leaned over so that he could lightly press his lips across Iruka's There was a faint tremor, a slight wavering in Iruka's resolve but he stayed put as those masked lips covered his own. It was Iruka's turn to regret the barrier between them however and he was about to reach up to take care of the problem when Kakashi drew back with a twitch of his lips which Iruka felt.

"Eat your soup, Iruka-sensei." A playful tap found Iruka's nose then as the jounin leaned back with yet another mysterious smile. Inside, Kakashi was going a victory dance but he gave little sign of his elation as he lazily went about pulling down his mask once more so he could eat the sandwich. Iruka was still staring at him, a delightfully flustered and dazed look of surprise in those changeable eyes. And without even realizing it, Iruka got his first look at Kakashi

unmasked. The silver-haired man's profile was finely sculpted and almost delicate in its sharpness. His nose was slender and graceful, lips a tad thin but oddly appealing in that sexy smirk it had curled up into when Kakashi realized he had an audience. This side of his

face was unblemished and smoothly skinned save for the faint shadowing of stubble lightly dusting the skin of Kakashi's jaw line. This seemed to strike an amusing cord in Iruka and he shook out of his reverie with a chuckle. It took a lot to tear his eyes away from that long-lashed dark eye and the masculine beauty of Kakashi's face. But the mental image of that prickle of stubble on Kakashi's jaw just amused the hell out of the chuunin and Iruka wondered to himself if it began to itch after a time to have the mask up. Did he get ingrown hairs? It was a valid question but Iruka sensed it would not be well received because Kakashi was growing a tad defensive looking now. Go figure, he didn't like being laughed at. A man who revealed himself as rarely as he did tend to be uncertain about how people would react if they saw his face and the fact that Iruka was chortling to himself did little for the jounin's self-esteem.

"Amused are we? I didn't think I was that bad looking." Did he just pout? Iruka could have sworn he caught a petulant curve to Kakashi's lip before the jounin moved to tug the mask up again. A tanned hand intercepted his however and lightly hooked the fabric to tug it

downwards while turning Kakashi's face towards Iruka's. All humor had faded from the chuunin's eyes then and he looked oddly intent as he studied Kakashi's face silently for a moment. Silence reigned between them then and Iruka's fingers finally moved to nudge at the edge of

the sagging forehead protector that masked the rest of Kakashi's face.

The fact that the jounin didn't push his hand away as he moved that encumbering band out of his view of Kakashi's face spoke of just how deep a level of trust the silver-haired man had in him. With hesitant carefulness, Iruka moved the headgear out of the way so he could look at Kakashi's full face without it blocking his view. The chuunin took his time looking his elder over, those dark eyes intent and serious as they traveled over and mapped out each and every plane and curve of Kakashi's face. The jounin was unused to be studied so intently and he felt oddly naked as his hand fell limply once more to lay at his side.

The unsettling crimson gaze of the Sharingan eye trained fully on Iruka's face, the triple pupils almost dizzying to look at as Kakashi silently dared the chuunin to look away. Iruka didn't however and his fingers trailed across Kakashi's face, one tender fingertip tracing cheek.

"You're beautiful." Came that simple yet heartfelt murmur as Iruka's lips curved up into a smile. "Absolutely breathtaking actually." His face wasn't perfect to be certain because the sharp line of his cheekbones and nose were almost too sharp, too delicate in their sculpting. Now that he could see all of Kakashi's face, Iruka saw the small scar marring one corner of Kakashi's lips, the faint scar of a pockmark on his jaw from where he'd no doubt suffered from chicken-pocks as a child. His face should have been too delicate, too feminine yet there was a masculine grace to his features that saved him from being too effeminate. "Can I kiss you?" That shy question had

Kakashi's eyes widening slightly, the dark pupil in the unscarred eye narrowing slightly before a goofy grin curved his lips.

"I thought you'd never ask." Despite his teasing words however, Kakashi sat right there and didn't move an inch as the furiously blushing chuunin slowly pushed the trey with his untouched soup and sandwich on it out of the way. Tanned fingers finally curved along the line of Kakashi's jaw, those calloused yet sensitive fingertips scraping along the stubble there as Iruka leaned over to kiss him.

Their noses bumped a bit however as the chuunin grew clumsy in his hesitant shyness and both drew back with a chuckle to eye each other.

Iruka looked mildly horrified while Kakashi seemed amused by the whole thing. "Let's try that again, shall we?" Kakashi's hands rose, tangling in dark locks as he pulled Iruka back in and guided him until their lips met truly for the first time. Both men shivered a bit at the press of heat as warm tiers molded and settled in a fairly chaste kiss. The promise of more was there however and Iruka lightly brushed his lips across Kakashi's in a teasing manner that had the silver-haired man wondering if he'd go mad with each feather-light caress. Those pale fingers tightened in Iruka's hair. However, a silent warning before Kakashi tilted his head to slant his lips across

the chuunin's mouth with a lot more heat than the dark-haired man had been expecting.

Surprise flared up in Iruka then as his eyes flew open. He hadn't even been aware they'd closed and the soft flick of Kakashi's tongue against his lower lip had a small whimper rising in his throat. Half of him was delirious with happiness and wanted to continue while the

other half, the logical half, was telling him to take this slowly. He had learned bitterly in the past what could happen if you rushed headlong into a relationship with little care for the consequences.

"Iruka..." His name was a mere breath upon his lips as Kakashi whispered that name like a plea. His mouth moved along the chuunin's once more, teeth nipping lightly at the other man's bottom lip as he sought permission to continue. The jounin could feel his control growing shakier and shakier by the second because with each breathy sound Iruka made, Kakashi found his resolve not to molest the other man right then and there slipping a bit. Finally, after what could only be a small eternity in Kakashi's opinion, those warm tiers slowly parted beneath his. Once more, Iruka should have known better than to give Kakashi an inch because the jounin shamelessly took advantage of his partner's acquiescence and his tongue slipped smoothly into the warmth of Iruka's mouth.

Surprise shown brightly in the chuunin's eyes then as he started to pull away only to find himself trapped by those slender fingers in his hair. A shiver ran through Iruka then as Kakashi explored his mouth with a dizzying amount of skill before the jounin sought out his own tongue to engage it into a duel of sorts.

Neither knew who groaned first but the sound filled the air all the same as the kiss spiraled out of control then. Basic logic like the fact that this was going to get out of control quickly or the fact

that they might need to breath just didn't seem to get through to the two of them as the kiss deepened and grew more impassioned.

Logic had been thrown out the door by now and Iruka found out just how dangerous a repressed sex drive could be when presented with someone as desirable as Kakashi. As they finally drew away to pant lightly to themselves, the chuunin discovered that somewhere along the way his

hands had grown minds of their own and had snaked under the edge of Kakashi's shirt to trail warm fingers along his back and chest.

Kakashi's hands ghosted across the chuunin's stomach in revenge, causing the younger man to gasp softly as his flesh recoiled from the ticklish touch. Both men were far more shaken than either wanted to admit and silver hair mingled with dark as Kakashi leaned his forehead

against Iruka's with a grin. "If that's your idea of a kiss I think I could spend the rest of my life doing this." It was corny as all hell and no doubt pulled directly from one of his beloved Icha Icha Paradise books. Iruka groaned and flicked Kakashi's nipple in revenge.

The jounin actually squeaked then and jumped as he pulled away. "Hey now! I was just giving you a compliment." Mischief was born in Iruka's eyes as it mingled with dark passion that was almost as dizzying to look at as the swirling wheels of the Sharingan eye.

"Allow me to return the favor." Iruka was still blushing brightly but there was a definite hint of experience in the man's gestures as he brought his lips to Kakashi's jawline and began to nibble at the slightly rough skin there. His lips were silken and oh so hot as they explored the sensitive skin of the jounin's face. Because it was covered up most of the time, the silver-haired man's skin had become hypersensitive and erogenous as Iruka discovered when he licked the hollow of Kakashi's jaw. The breathy moan that rumbled in the jounin's throat delighted Iruka to no end and he did it again, licking and suckling lightly on the skin there before skimming his lips to seek

out newer flesh.

"If you're going to breed at least have the decency to not do it where I sleep." An irascible voice broke through the haze of passion then, shattering that fragile bubble of lust like glass to leave both men gasping for air as reality slammed back into them. Iruka all but jumped three feet in the air and almost gave himself whiplash as he whirled around trying to find the source of the voice.

When those panicked eyes fell upon the small form of Pakkun, his mouth just dropped open in shocked surprise.

Iruka looked much like he was going to burst into flames right then and there. He was an almost unhealthy shade of red as he finally caught sight of Pakkun who stood there dripping and rather testy looking a few feet out of the way. Well out of snatching and throwing distance of course, but close enough that the dog could get his mortifying message across all the same. A squeak that wasn't supposed to come from anything but a strangled mouse rose in Iruka's throat as

he leapt to his feet and bolted for the bathroom with a hastily croaked "Excuse me!" Hearing the door slam shut put the final nail in any hopes Kakashi had of getting laid tonight and the look he shot Pakkun was downright dirty and hateful.

"What the hell was that about, mutt?" A thread of danger could be heard in Kakashi's voice then, that rich timbre low and seemingly calm in its apathy. Pakkun knew that tone all too well but wasn't very impressed it would seem because all he did was pant and shake off the excess water.

"I'm wet and cold. I ran that stupid scroll for you and now I want to go to bed so get out of my bed." Those tiny paws left little muddy prints across the hardwood floor as the nin-dog padded over to Kakashi and used his thigh as a vault so he could climb up on the couch.

"Besides, you're pushing him too much, idiot." That single dark eye narrowed in a faintly menacing look then as Kakashi's unmasked face grew tight with annoyance.

"And why should I take the advice of someone who has fleas?"

"Don't talk that way about yourself, brat." If possible, a wolfish grin curved the pug-like face as he slowly walked in a circle around the couch cushions in search of the perfect place to lay down. "Do you really think he was as fine with that if he bolted like a scared bunny like he did? Use what's left of your brains." Dammit! He hated it when the damned mutt made sense! It wasn't fair...grrr...

"I'm still wondering why I'm taking romantic advice from a mutt like you, Pakkun. Who died and left you as the authority on human social interaction?" He was more petulant sounding than peevish now and Pakkun just snorted in disgust. Kakashi probably didn't like the concept of accepting advice from a canine. Not that is was Pakkun's problem if the boy didn't want to use good advice when it was presented to him.

"Look at it this way, I've got more experience in the romance department than you. So are you out to keep him or just screw him into a wall? If it's only screwing then by all means continue but I promise you that if you push him too far he'll bolt."

"...and what do you suggest O Mighty Fleabag?" Sarcasm was still his best friend when people's barbs landed too close to home and the silver-haired jounin crawled to his feet with all the lanky grace of a feline.

"Well see there was this one bitch I knew. She was like that, really skittish."

"In case you missed it he wasn't exactly skittish when you walked in!" Annoyance laced Kakashi's voice then as he glowered down at the dog and sent a disgusted look down at the now wasted soup. He'd be lucky to get Iruka out of the bathroom much less out here again with Pakkun on the couch.

"Let me finish, brat!" A warning growl as the canine matched him glare for glare. "She was the excitable type. Got very, very hot however and just lost her mind and that was just fine with me. Of course after she regained her senses she bolted like a skittish rabbit and I never saw

her again..."

"...I think that just means you're terrible in bed." Came Kakashi's deadpan reply then, those mussed locks falling into that unmasked visage as he granted his nin-dog a disgusted look. Pakkun didn't seem to appreciate that too much and growled warningly once again, his hackles rising then as slightly yellowed canine's were revealed in a snarl.

"You want my help or not, whelp?"

"Not particularly." The silver-haired man shrugged lazily and stretched before moving to gather up the discarded dishes from their barely touched meal. "I'm going to try and talk him out of the

bathroom before he crawls through the air vent or something, night mutt." The dishes were dumped unceremoniously in the sink and Pakkun opened a lazy eye to observe his human before snorting and burying his nose in his paws.

"Night, whelp."

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Okay so thanks goes out to everyone who's just been absolutely amazing with the supporting of my poor hesitant writer's heart, especially my beta for this chapter pixeth and maldaeien who's been a real sweetheart and has been my sounding board and fellow fangirl. . And killer of my muse! XP No more hairy Gai legs! Also telosphilos and demondreams! And of course carcinya, bite the hands that feeds, and chibirisu-chan /sniffs/ I wanna grow up and write like you three….;; And of course for Nezuko who rocks in their own right, dk-joy, Eyes-of-Truth, RukaIayLomperGay, Karaii-chan, eyes0nme19 and anyone I'm forgetting this early in the morning... X.x

Okay enough with the gushing….only another chapter or so to go and maybe this plot bunny can be put to rest to go breed other bunnies. Just gotta keep it away from the crack variety.. .okay I go and die now


	4. Strawberry Flavored Sweet Nothings?

Title: After the Rains

Author: BitterEloquence

Pairings: KakaIru

Comments: Almost done! Promise...¬.¬ Really...I do...

Disclaimer: No matter how much pocky I offer 'em, they're still not going to give me Kakashi and Iruka. I even promised to return them in Near Mint Condition...but alas, it shall not be...

* * *

Kakashi sighed as he approached the closed door of his bathroom, a decidedly uncertain look on that normally calm and placid visage when the jounin knocked lightly on the door, hoping to get Iruka's attention. 

There was nothing but silence on the other end of the door and Kakashi idly wondered to himself if he'd have to break out the lock-picks in order to get the mortified chuunin to come out. "Iruka? Are you alright in there?"

Silence.

Geh, this just wasn't his night. With a sigh, the silver-haired man turned to walk into his bedroom where he kept a spare set of lock-picks.

When he moved away from the door however, Kakashi heard the click of the lock and the rattle of a hand on the doorknob as the door slowly slid open to reveal a miserable dark chestnut eye. "Is he gone now?"

"He's asleep if that's what you're wondering." Wry amusement gleamed in that dark eye as Kakashi turned back towards the door. "I'm sorry about that, Iruka, I should have remembered I sent him out on a mission to deliver something for me." Kakashi tried to smile in his typical lazy manner but the chuunin wasn't buying it and suspicion gleamed brightly in that single visible dark orb as Iruka eyed the silver-haired man.

"You forgot? Aren't you supposed to be some super genius jounin or something?" Though Kakashi couldn't see it, the Copy-nin knew Iruka's arms were crossed across his chest as a doubtful looking single dark eye peered at him through the thin crack in the door.

That was low. An exaggerated pout had Kakashi's lower lip poking out as he bestowed a wounded puppy-dog eyed look upon Iruka. A look, the chuunin it would appear was not fully immune to because a groan could be heard before the door opened to reveal the blushing Iruka.

"Does this mean I'm forgiven?" A hopeful look then as Kakashi grinned playfully and reached up a pale hand to capture a single trailing lock of damp dark hair. Iruka was struck by how much Kakashi's mannerisms mirrored those of his nin-dogs. He had that begging look for forgiveness down pat and against his will, the chuunin felt his heart melt a bit.

Kakashi seemed to sense victory in the air however and grinned in a slightly more mischievous way before nudging the door open a shade more so he could lean in to brush his lips across Iruka's. "I did mean what I said, by the way. I am interested in you for more then just sex." Some might have considered his words blunt and tactless. Those people were not shinobi however, did not know the preciousness of each and ever breath of life.

Iruka was a ninja but even he couldn't fully comprehend Kakashi's thinking and need for complete and open honesty. Ironic really, for the ninja known and infamous for his half-riddles and his penchant for 'looking beneath the beneath'. It wasn't something one would expect from the mysterious jounin to be honest, but the chuunin also knew how it was on the lines, how the reminder that each night was a gift and could be your last and how much that could eat at a person's sanity.

That mindset had led to countless one-night trysts and more then a few unexpected pregnancies. In war, a man or a woman would do anything to reaffirm the fact that they were still alive, still human. Sex was just another tool to used to remind oneself that death had not come for them yet. To be honest, Iruka wasn't very surprised at how….forward Kakashi was being. In these unsettling times, it was almost to be expected. While the chances of Iruka getting a mission so dangerous that he was in danger of loosing his life were slim, the same could not be said for Kakashi. Without a team to train, the silver-haired jounin had been taking on some of the most dangerous missions to be had as of late.

For Kakashi, tonight could very well be his last night on this earth.

It made him a tad desperate, in a hurry to gain Iruka's acknowledgement and when the chuunin didn't push him away, he deepened the kiss once more. His hand slide through Iruka's hair to cup the back of that dark head as his tongue sought entrance to Iruka's mouth. That was a bit too much for Iruka however and his hands pressed gentle again Kakashi's chest, pushing him back as dark honey fingers curved along the scarred planes of Kakashi's torso. "Wait."

A low groan could be heard from the jounin as he bestowed a pitiful look upon Iruka, the desire bright and dark in his eyes as he watched the blushing chuunin try to gain control of himself. "I'm flattered, I really am but this is too fast, Kakashi-sensei…." Oh dear Gods how he hated those words and Kakashi nodded tightly as his teeth grit slightly, his jaw jumping with his fight to control himself.

"I understand." A soft scoff could be heard from Iruka then as a wry twist of his lips proved how much he didn't buy that.

"Liar. But I have the feeling you'll respect it all the same and that means a lot to me, Kakashi-sensei." A serious look filled Iruka's eyes as they met that dark orb and it's dizzying crimson companion. "It's…it's been a long time for me so any patience would be appreciated." The tips of his ears were turning red again, quiet a feat considering his dark complexion. "I'm afraid I'm a bit rusty at this sort of thing." Iruka's self-deprecating smile had liquid heat pooling in the base of Kakashi's belly, the desire for the chuunin only heightened by that sweetly charming expression and Kakashi had to grab onto the doorjamb to keep from pouncing the delectable dark-haired man right then and there.

Didn't Iruka realize how delicious a picture he presented with those longish strands of dark hair snaking across his bare shoulders? Did he not he realize how sexy that sweetly shy smile was? Apparently not because he didn't realize just how much he was torturing Kakashi in that moment when he professed his reasons for being so shy. Just as he surely didn't realize the absolutely carnal train of thought that ran through the pervert's mind when Iruka mentioned being rusty.

Oh how he'd love to oil him back up again…drat! Dammit stop thinking like that!

It was only going to make him more miserable once again and Kakashi bit back another groan and nodded tightly as he fought to dredge up a smile. "Can we see where it goes at least?" He wasn't going to push the chuunin but then again…if he happened to kiss the dark-haired man until he couldn't think straight anymore and things went a bit beyond kissing…well…he wasn't going to complain in the least.

Iruka granted him a doubtful look and Kakashi just grinned playfully as he stalked into the bathroom then, effectively trapping the chuunin within as he let the door close behind him with an ominous click. "There…that should keep the ill-mannered mutt out. He's got more fleas then brains or manners I'm afraid." The smile that flickered on the edge of Kakashi's lips was warm and sweet.

Iruka eyed Kakashi with the same amount of wariness that a mouse would eye a suddenly very plump and pleased looking feline sitting daintily outside of his mouse hole. The jounin, apparently complete immune to the wary look Iruka was giving him, continued to stroll over to the chuunin until he had the dark-haired man backed up into a wall.

"K...Kakashi-sens-" A firm press of one pale finger to his lips stilled the word in Iruka's throat as the silver-haired man smiled in a sweetly mysterious manner.

"Don't. You don't have to be so formal with me, Iruka." The faint tugging of a smile curling the corners of Kakashi's lips had Iruka's pulse speeding up a bit at the potency of that expression. Damn him, why did he have to smile at him like that? It put him at ease….made him want to trust him, something that Iruka knew was a dangerous thing to do. "I'm not going to hurt you or force you into anything, Iruka, so calm down, hmmn?" Kakashi tried to keep his voice light and calm but there was a note of barely masked hurt in his voice as those suddenly serious eyes trained upon Iruka. Even the crimson Sharingan was naked and revealed now as the jounin stared at Iruka with a suddenly solemn look.

Shame ran hot and harsh through Iruka and he nodded stiffly while fighting the urge to fidget and twitch beneath Kakashi's gaze. He knew that his behavior was hardly fair or even polite. Thus, with an unsteady breath, Iruka nodded carefully and even managed a weak smile. The faint twitching of Kakashi's lips told him the jounin had forgiven him even without words as a pale hand rose to lie against rich honeyed skin. "Relax, Iruka...I'm not going to do anything you don't want, I promise."

Amusement had returned to lighten those bi-colored eyes as Kakashi leaned in close enough to place a light and chaste kiss to Iruka's forehead. A pale thumb skimmed along Iruka's cheekbone with surprising tenderness for a moment before sliding to glide through those dark strands of hair. "Turn around." Iruka eyed him narrowly then with open suspicion but Kakashi merely looked faintly amused at his reaction before his hands moved to turn the other man around with little resistance.

"I'm just going to comb out your hair. You're too tense." A breathy and husky chuckle could be heard as the jounin reached for the comb lying atop the counter near the sink. Iruka had been surprised at the quiet sort of efficiency Kakashi had used in his organization of his bathroom. It was neater then the chuunin would have thought possible of the seemingly lazy and lackadaisical jounin.

At the first gentle tug at his now tangled and damp hair, Iruka tensed a bit but Kakashi proved to be surprisingly gentle in his ministrations as he slowly worked the knots and tangles out of the chuunin's hair. No one had combed his hair in...well...years actually. Not since he'd been a boy at least and Iruka found himself relaxing involuntarily beneath the silver-haired man's ministrations. Those rich chocolate brown orbs grew hazy and slowly relaxed with pleasure with each gentle stroke of the comb. If Iruka had been a cat, no doubt he'd have been purring by now.

He was not capable of such a thing however but Kakashi could tell by the slow relaxing of his shoulders and the draining of tension in his stance that the chuunin was enjoying things all the same. A mischievous little smile lit on Kakashi's lips then as he watched the silken play of Iruka's hair run through the teeth of the comb and how his own fingers were lost in that rich sable fall of gleaming chocolate.

Once Iruka's hair had been combed smooth, Kakashi continued to gently comb those dark strands if only for the simple please of watching Iruka's enjoyment of the movements. Eventually the comb would be put aside however as Kakashi settled his hands on Iruka's shoulders, pale fingers slowly kneading at the flesh there. His touch was not sexual and thus the chuunin took little offence to the movements though he did wince a bit when Kakashi found the knots and tensed muscles of his neck and shoulders.

"You really do need to relax, Iruka-sensei. You're a mess." The honorific had been sung out in a playful manner as Kakashi's chin came to rest on the other man's shoulders as those spiky silver strands tickled the sides of Iruka's neck until the chuunin fought down a squeak and tried not the squirm. He was especially sensitive at the back of his neck and that was exactly where those silver-grey strands were tickling.

"Err...sorry? It's been a long day." A note of panic entered Iruka's voice then if only for the fact that he was trying not to giggle like a schoolgirl…which all too evident, much to the chuunin's mortification.

"More like a long year I'd say." Kakashi noted with a low chuckle but thoughtfully moved his head so he wasn't torturing the chuunin. But that knowledge was stored away all the same and he continued to lightly massage the other's shoulders before peppering a soft line of testing kisses across the tanned skin he found there. A few scars marred the honeyed flesh but aside from that and the knots of tension, the chuunin's shoulders were sinfully delicious looking.

Logic warned Kakashi that Iruka would probably jump like a startled cat if he nibbled on the skin there so he reined in his more base urges and stepped away. "Come on." This earned him a baffled look but the Copy-nin merely smiled in his mysterious manner and lightly gripped Iruka's hand in his own so he could draw the chuunin out of the bathroom.

"What are you planning." Rightfully leery, Iruka nonetheless allowed himself to be pulled along as Kakashi guided in him into the bedroom. Wariness lit in those dark eyes when their destination was revealed and he'd just begun to gather himself to resist when Kakashi laid another slender fingertip to his lips.

"Don't panic. I'm just going to give you a massage. I'll keep my hands to myself...well mostly at least, hmmn?" Playful mischief gleamed in Kakashi's eyes before both turn upwards into a happy little smile which was revealed to be far more potent and endearing without the mask and obscuring things. "See, I've even got my clothes still on. I won't pounce you onto the bed and steal your virtue or anything."

Iruka eyed Kakashi warily and narrowly for a moment, his suspicion evident on his face before he nodded grudgingly. If he were honest with himself, he'd have admitted that even the light and testing massage to his shoulders had left him all but a ball of putty. And it was possible to give a massage without it being even remotely sexual, right? It was safe, right?

Why didn't he believe it either?

Not wanting to offend or hurt Kakashi's feelings however, Iruka found himself led to lie out on the bed. The jounin was grinning like a cat who'd just eaten the canary and had followed it up with a fresh bowl of cream. "Relax. Just close your eyes and enjoy it." Fighting back a mildly caustic remark, Iruka just snorted softly in quiet amusement and slowly closed his eyes. Kakashi left the bed long enough to retrieve a bottle of oil from a bedside drawer.

No doubt, if the chuunin's eyes had been open, he would have had a deliciously bug-eyed look of surprise on his face as he saw just what kind of oil it was. Okay...so maybe it was supposed to be used in a more...adult manner. Sure, it tasted like strawberries but it would get the job done, right?

Feline mischief filled Kakashi's face as he moved to straddled Iruka and he sat down on the other man's legs before the tanned man could jump off the bed. Those dark eyes had shot open and where glaring up at him but Kakashi simply smiled in his most innocent and innocuous manner and lightly moved his hand over Iruka's eyes to mask them. "Close your eyes and trust me." That husky murmur came, and when Kakashi's hand moved away from the other's face, those dark lashes lay in sable crescents across tanned features. "Good." Thus, the jounin then turned to his task. The cap was flipped open as he took a slightly perverted delight in turning it over so the viscous fluid rained down unto Iruka's shoulders to splash softly across the hollow between scarred shoulder blades.

A small trickle of the oil trailed slowly down the line of his spine to slowly trace out each and every bump of Iruka's backbone. The chuunin had flinched as if he'd been struck but a low, wordless murmur from Kakashi had him slowly relaxing and those pale hands went to work. Kakashi gathered the oil up in the palm of his hand, and smoothed it across those tense shoulders as he slowly began to work it into Iruka's skin.

Silence reigned between the two of them as Kakashi began the slow and tedious job of working the knots out of Iruka's shoulders and beneath his hands, Kakashi could feel the tension slowly ebb and flow out of the chuunin. Occasionally, he'd find a particularly stubborn and painful knot and Iruka's breath would still in his chest as he tried not to grimace. Kakashi could tell by the spasm of muscles beneath his thumb as he pressed into the knot that it was agony however and he followed each painful knot with a tender kiss to reddened and angry skin.

"Shhh...it'll go away...shhh..." Those whispered and softly soothing words would fill the air and Iruka could only marvel at the tenderness he found there. He would not have thought Kakashi capable of such tenderness, not after having seen the almost harsh and emotionless manner in which the man could tackle a situation.

Those soft murmurs and the tender strokes of Kakashi's fingers were lulling however and slowly but surely, the chuunin's muscles would grow lax and buttery beneath Kakashi's hands. A pleased smile curved the jounin's lips as he dropped them to press lightly against the back of Iruka's neck where those dark strands flowed like sable ink across the now relaxed curve of shoulder and neck. "See...that wasn't so bad, was it?" Iruka shivered minutely as Kakashi's words stirred the downy hairs there and he slowly managed to convince one eye peel open lazily enough to study the grinning man. A weak smile curved Iruka's lips and he nodded slowly. "Shall I continue?"

Mischief gleamed brightly in Kakashi's one visible eye, the shaggy fall of his hair now hiding the Sharingan from view and Iruka found he was unable to work up the wariness to doubt Kakashi's intentions. His mind and his body felt mushy….all but liquid with relaxation and Kakashi took his faint nod as permission to continue.

"Smells like strawberries." Iruka commented softly, his eyes slowly gliding open once more to peer up at Kakashi. The silver-haired man nodded with a grin before squeezing out a small dollop of the oil onto his finger so he could present it to the chuunin. "Scented?" Came the dark-haired man's bleary question and Kakashi's grin widened to a ghost of it's lecherous former self before that lone fingertip lightly painted Iruka's lips with the strawberry-flavored oil.

"Flavored," Surprise registered in Iruka's eyes and they widened fractionally, much to Kakashi's delight, as the finger smearing the oil across Iruka's lips. The faint catch in the chuunin's breath betrayed his nervousness as their playful banter and easy companionship slipped into something deeper and far more sensual. "Taste it….it's good." The tip of Kakashi's finger caught on the full lower curve of Iruka's bottom lip as he trailed it downwards to part the flesh softly. It rested there, the soft warmth of that pale flesh causing Iruka's lips to all but pulse with hypersensitive awareness. The chuunin did dare to lick hesitantly at the oil glistening softly on his lip however, and as promised, the flavor of strawberries exploded across his tongue. Iruka swallowed carefully as his mouth suddenly grew dry with nervousness.

Slowly and with great care, that tongue emerged once more to catch the last lingering traces of the sweet oil clinging to his upper lip but Iruka was a bit hesitant about going after the liquid on his lower lips considering Kakashi's fingertip resided there so achingly close to that sensitive tier.

Judging by the gleam of sensual mischief touching Kakashi's eyes, the jounin was all too aware of this fact.

Mildly put out, Iruka's eyes narrowed slightly at the silent challenge and he boldly swiped his tongue out to catch every hint of flavor coating his and Kakashi's skin. The audible catch of Kakashi's breath betrayed the jounin's surprise and the dilation of his pupils, one all but lost in the darkness of his right eye, showed just how much the man enjoyed even that slight brush. "It tastes good." Now it was Iruka's turn to be the tormenter and the smirk that quirked the corners of his lips had Kakashi's mouth going dry and the jounin swallowed painfully before nodding carefully.

"Now who's not playing fair?" The faint pout pursing Kakashi's lips only amused Iruka more and those dark chocolate eyes gleamed with mischief as his inner prankster cackled gleefully. In a twisted fashion, this was getting Kakashi back for all the stunts he'd pulled over the years. Judging from the dazed and slightly pole-axed expression on Kakashi's face, Iruka knew he'd won this particular battle and softly flicked his tongue across the scarred fingertip laying lightly against his lips.

"Who said anything about playing fair?" Iruka's voice was decidedly husky and a tad sensual as he purred those words out. The pale features of the jounin were tight with a ragged sort of need then, pain seeming to mingle with the desire he felt for the chuunin as Kakashi fought down the part of him that was all but screaming for him to finish the job right then and there by claiming the dark-haired man for his own. It wasn't arrogance or pride that told Kakashi that if he exerted his will here, Iruka would indeed fall into line but the part of Kakashi that still contained a small shred of humanity and moral conviction held him back.

He really needed to work on those annoying morals; they were seriously beginning to crimp his style. The shudder of the silver-haired man's breath filled Iruka's ear as Kakashi's face dropped to nuzzle at the crook of his neck. It was the warm wash of the jounin's tongue across that now flavor-kissed flesh that had a gasp catching in Iruka's throat however. "You taste like strawberries now. I could eat you up right here and now." That playful reminder was breathed softly into Iruka's ear before Kakashi's teeth nipped lightly over the erratic beat of Iruka's heart where the pulse fluttered as nervous and delicate as a captured sparrow. When Iruka didn't push him away, Kakashi could not stop himself from seeing just how much farther this game would be allowed to be played. Those oil slicked hands glided down the chuunin's back to map out the long lines of those lithe muscles and the sleek line of his waist to skim atop the faded and frayed waistband of the old pants he'd given Iruka to wear.

The muscles tensed and jumped beneath Kakashi's fingertips as Iruka squirmed with a yelp and the jounin grinned wolfishly before pressing his weight down on the back of Iruka's thighs to hold him in place. In doing so, Kakashi's groin rubbed tantalizingly against the firm line of the chuunin's rear and a groan clawed its way up Kakashi's throat.

Iruka made a strangled sound and went very still much like a small animal caught in a cat's claws would. Both men were far more affected by the involuntary movement then either cared to consider and even the infamous Copy-nin of Konoha found himself at a loss as he tried to convince his body that the majority of his blood belonged in the head atop his shoulders and not the one further south.

Finally, the silver-haired man managed to rein his lust in and he began to massage and work at the knots bunched up at the small of Iruka's back with the same tender attention to detail as he'd given to the other man's shoulders. "You're so tense. Don't you ever relax, Iruka-sensei?" He was trying to be conversational and thus distract himself from his current….predicament….

Iruka gladly grasped onto that distraction and Kakashi could feel that lean form tremble with a mirthless chuckle as Iruka moved his arms up to rest his cheek in a soft cushion of dark hair and supporting forearms.

"I never have time for relaxing, Kakashi-sensei, because even without the schoolwork and manning the mission desk, there's always something to be done around the village these days." Of course, Iruka didn't mention the reason he constantly forced himself to keep busy was so that he didn't have time to think or dwell on the painful memories of his life and the sad state of his existence. Without Naruto's constant influx of brightness and sunny happiness in his life, Iruka had found he was achingly lonely and lost without his young friend. He'd never have imagined getting so close to the kyuubi-host that he'd miss Naruto as much as he did, but after the boy had left, Iruka had found himself with his best friend and the person who'd become the closest thing he had to a family.

It was always strange how a person never appreciated something until it was gone.

"But what about you, Iruka-sensei," Kakashi's lips brushed the swell of Iruka's ear as the silver-haired man leaned down enough for those spiky strands to tickle the tanned flesh of the chuunin's neck and ear. "You need to just sit back and enjoy life sometimes. Because for people like us, tonight could very well be our last," Kakashi knew how abysmally cheesy that sounded and found himself making a mental promise to cut back on his Icha Icha Paradise intake. Because while those flowery and overdramatic words would work out for the suave and handsome heroes of the page, Kakashi knew that was not likely to help him much in real life.

Sure enough, the look Iruka granted him with was hardly amused and the note of cynical amusement touching those dark eyes had Kakashi biting back a grimace.

"That has got to be the lamest line anyone has ever tried to use on me." The unexpected wash of color across Kakashi's face as he blushed had Iruka's eyes widening fractionally. Kakashi was…err….was that even possible?

There was not doubt about it, the Copy-nin of Konoha, Sharingan Kakashi could indeed blush because the pale man was steadily approaching Tomato Impersonation levels of redness.

He really, really needed to stop reading Icha Icha Paradise and branch out a bit in his porn, Kakashi decided. How was Iruka to know that their conversation was following almost line for line a scene from volume 1; chapter 8 of Icha Icha Paradise? Of course, considering Kakashi was a genius who'd been reading those books far too long, he was able to quote the next line of the suave and handsome hero. "But it's the truth and if this was the last night I were to be alive, I can think of no where else I'd rather be then right here with you."

On the other hand, Kakashi highly doubted Iruka's reaction would be the same as that as the dainty and demure Lord's daughter, but hey…he could hope couldn't he?

Imagine his surprise when Iruka turned red, causing Kakashi to laugh outright as he found he was unable to stop himself. This seemed to annoy the blushing chuunin to no end however, and Iruka began to squirm and flail about as he attempted to shove Kakashi off. The jounin just calmly allowed the smaller man to flip and flail about on the bed until they were face to face before settling his weight once more on Iruka's thighs. Those strong hands fell to pin the other man's shoulder as all laughter faded from Kakashi's face only to be replaced by a quiet intensity.

"You're far too cute for my own good, did you know that." That quiet murmur reached Iruka's ears moments before Kakashi's lips were on his own and Iruka discovered he rather enjoyed kissing Kakashi. It wasn't something he'd have considered up until tonight but this entire evening had been surreal enough in it's eye-opening surprises that the idle thought didn't disturb Iruka as much as he'd have thought it would. Instead, he lost himself in the kiss and breathed a sigh of pleasure into the other's mouth as Kakashi sought entrance.

A distant part of Kakashi's mind did a small victory dance when they both found themselves growing more and more impassioned and well on the way to mutual seduction, a path they'd both been on up until Pakkun's rude interruption. Sadly, Kakashi had kept enough presence of mind to remember he was trying to take things slower then the usual 'Lets hop into bed and screw like rabid bunnies' route he usually preferred to take.

Surely indulging in this for just a little bit longer wouldn't be too bad….would it? Neither found themselves willing to pull out of the kiss as their tongues wrestled for dominance. Kakashi eventually won and he idly noted Iruka's arms come up to wrap about his neck in sweet surrender.

Eventually, Kakashi finally had to break the kiss so they could both breathe however and they broke apart slowly and lazily with a few soft kisses shared between them as both convinced themselves that breathing was indeed a necessary part of life. A decidedly dazed look gleamed brightly in Iruka's eyes as he looked up at Kakashi through a haze of lust and the jounin smiled fractionally at that bemused expression on the tanned-man's face.

"You're so beautiful." Kakashi couldn't help himself. He knew it was trite and damned cheesy sounding but in that moment, Iruka was more beautiful then anything he'd ever seen in his entire life. Seeing the normally prim and proper academy teacher laying there in his bed with those dark strands falling rumpled and messy atop his pillow; a dazed look of passion on that scarred visage…well it was more then Kakashi could resist and he proceeded to demonstrate to Iruka just how desirable he found him. Pale and unmasked lips were surprisingly supple and soft across Iruka's neck as Kakashi nibbled and licked his way along that strawberry flavored column. The tickle of stubble along Kakashi's jaw had Iruka fighting back a rather un-manly giggle.

"T…That tickles. Hehehe…." The squirming of that lithe form beneath his had Kakashi shifting his weight a bit to keep from being thrown off in the process, In doing so, their groins met in a very suggestive manner and both men froze with a twined catch of breath in their throats. Iruka stirred first and Kakashi arms nearly gave out on him in surprise as Iruka flexed his hips to grind their groins together once more. A choked off gasp caught in Kakashi's throat and he looked to the mischievous Iruka with a surprised expression on his face.

"You're such a tease." He grumbled and lowered his lips to Iruka's once more as they continued to rock and rub against each other for a few moments. The slide of his erection against Iruka's was nearly more then Kakashi's fraying control could bear and he finally had to slide away from that sweet sensation before they both made a mess of their pants. Iruka's dismayed sound of protest was music to the jounin's ears as he slowly slid down that tanned and lithely muscled form with a feline grin.

Here, the skin was not tainted with the taste of the oil and all Kakashi could taste was Iruka and his own unique textures tastes. Pale lips skimmed the jagged line of an older scar where it marred tanned flesh and Kakashi spent the next five minutes delighting in each and every unique change in texture and taste of Iruka's skin as he explored the chuunin's torso with a playful sort of thoroughness.

The feather soft caresses and touches of Kakashi's lips had Iruka alternating between melting and squirming until finally, the jounin's lips found the waistband of those faded pants. The air between them was thick with tension as Kakashi's gaze traveled up the length of Iruka's body to meet those dark and dazed eyes, seeking out silent permission to go on.

The chuunin did not force his hand away as those slender fingers slipped beneath the waistband to skim along the sensitive skin surrounding the flat plane of Iruka's taut belly. Finally, Kakashi hooked his fingers into the elastic and started to tug it down past the sharp juts of Iruka's hipbones, his lips seeking out more of that golden brown flesh with hungry kisses and nibbling teeth.

Surprisingly enough, Iruka didn't jump or force him away as his breath caught in his throat, those dark eyes watching Kakashi's movements with a wide-eyed sort of fascination. Tanned fingers twisted in Kakashi's bedding as the jounin traced the hollow of his navel and nibbled delicately on the skin there. "K…Kakashi…." The man's name was breathless upon trembling lips and Iruka clenched his eyes shut as pleasure shot through him with each tracing of pale fingers along the jutting bone of his hip. Kakashi had taken a delightful pleasure in teasing and licking his nipples and the jounin seemed to experience that same playful delight in exploring the curve of his belly the sensitive line of his hips.

But then, Iruka nearly shot off the bed with a yelp as Kakashi discovered just how ticklish he was when those silver strands tickled and brushed against the hollow if Iruka's hipbones and the chuunin half-curled in a protective manner as a hysterical laugh clawed its way up his throat. Completely thrown off his rhythm by Iruka's hands suddenly forcing him away, Kakashi blinked in surprise before chuckling softly at the wide-eyed and panicked look on the other man's face. He truly was too cute for Kakashi's own good.

"Ticklish much are we?" The low purr came with sultry airs as Kakashi leaned up to capture Iruka's lips once more in a drugged and drawn out kiss. He explored the chuunin's mouth with a lazy sort of languidness and merely trailed his hands across Iruka's skin with little rhyme or reason. Iruka was unable to form much in the way of conscious thought as Kakashi's calloused yet talented hands set each and every one of his senses on end.

He was drowning in Kakashi.

The feel of Kakashi's warmth bleeding through the dark fabric of his shirt as he laid across him. The taste of that hot mouth as the jounin drank from him with increased the passion. Each low groan of approval had Iruka's heart soaring and the satisfied smirk curving Kakashi's lips when they finally pulled away had a goofy grin filling Iruka's eyes. There was something unspeakably sexy about the fact that the jounin now had a delightfully lustful and hazy look in his eyes; lust that Iruka had managed to invoke within the mysterious jounin. The heat in Kakashi's eyes had Iruka trembling faintly and he raised a hand so he could trace the scar cutting across the handsome man's face with surprising tenderness.

The smile that crossed Kakashi's lips was inexplicably sweet and almost boyish in it's innocence as he nestled his cheek into Iruka's palm with a quiet sigh. "Kakashi-sen-" The press of a pale and scarred fingertip to his lips had Iruka stopping before he could utter that honorific and the chuunin smiled weakly before nodding in silent agreement to Kakashi's previous request. "Kakashi…." His lips moved against that slender finger and the jounin looked inordinately pleased. "I….I don't know how far you intend on-" Once again, Iruka was interrupted by that pale finger. The faint shake of Kakashi's head and the soft smile gleaming in the other man's eyes had warmth traveling through Iruka in a delicious shiver that worked it's tingling way up his spine.

"I'm not going to push you into something you're not ready for, Iruka. I desire you but I also value you and whatever it is we've got between us too much to throw it away on a quick lay." Did the other man even realize just how much those softly uttered words meant to a man like Kakashi? A man who'd spent most of his life fighting against forming attachments? Did Iruka realize just how inept and uncertain the jounin was in matters of the heart or how much Kakashi wanted it despite his fears and past heartbreaks? A quick fuck; that was something Kakashi knew and something he could accept easily but this was relatively new territory for the Copy-nin.

Perhaps it was old age setting in, perhaps he was simply growing too old to fuck around anymore but Kakashi found himself wanting something more then just a quick night of passion and an empty bed in the morning. He wanted to wake up to someone, to see the glow of love in sleep-hazed eyes. It wasn't something Kakashi thought he deserved but like most flawed and broken people, he craved what he didn't deserve or had any right claiming.

Deep down, Kakashi knew that if he were a true man, he wouldn't be entangling Iruka in his life, that he wouldn't dare claim the other for his own. Kakashi knew he wasn't a strong enough man to do so however, that he was not strong enough to deny his desires and thus he would dared to risk both of their hearts on something that he wasn't even good enough to deserve.

But something he needed and craved all the same.

"Kakashi…." The gleam of emotion in Iruka's eyes was unreadable and too confusing for Kakashi to make out but he understood Iruka's intentions all too well when the other's hand tangled in his hair and yanked him in for a heated kiss. There was a bit of fumbling in that heated aggression because Iruka was not used to taking the lead in such a violent manner. All the same, he got his point across clearly enough as they both fell back with a moan. "We're supposed to see what happens, right?" The chuunin tried to grin in a light-hearted manner but the uncertainty was evident in his gaze all the same, causing Kakashi to smile softly.

"To a certain extent, yes….we're going to take things slowly and see what happens. Right now I just want to make you feel good." A lecherous grin as Kakashi's duel-colored eyes bore into rich chocolate brown. "Well…that and see how loudly I can get you to moan my name…" Kakashi decided he could spend the rest of his life watching the flooding of color on Iruka's cheeks and never get bored. The chuunin was so delightfully open and genuine with his expressions. "Now….shall we get started?" Mischief lit in Kakashi's eyes as he lowered his face to nuzzle playfully at Iruka's cheek and the unsteady wash of the Iruka's breath across his face had Kakashi's mischievous side emerging all the more.

"Y…Yes…let's." Those words were music to Kakashi's ears and he kissed Iruka again with a happy little chuckle before settling in to achieve his goals of the night by making the chuunin moan his name loud enough to hopefully annoy the neighbors. It was a nice goal, if Kakashi did say so himself.

Hey, a man could hope, couldn't he?

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A/N: CptnIndecision: If you think my very humble fanfics are good go check out the true masters of KakaIru fanfiction like ChibiRisu-chan, bite-the-hand-that-feeds, Isodle1, hercat and a gazillion other authors I could shamelessly plug for. Karaii: You're a dear for stroking my ego so shamelessly, thanks a lot...dk-joy: same for you and hopefully you will enjoy the smut-ness without Pakkun's interuptions... And Nezuko: I hope I've managed to keep you intrigued even through the emotional junk. And last, but not least, eyes0nme19: Yes there will be another chapter though it might be lemon and thus I'll have to link it directly to my LJ, we shall all wait and see what my yaoi smut devils have to say about this. I might pansy out at the last minute, who knows...;;  



	5. Did I Just See what I Think I Just Saw?

After the Rains: Epilogue

Author: BitterEloquence

Disclaimer: See, I returned them in mostly new condition so please don't sue me, Kishimoto-san you'll get some pocket lint and maybe a packet of ramen noodles if you were lucky

This is the epilogue for After the Rains, I hope everyone liked it and I appreciate everyone hanging on through to the end. There is a lemon-y chapter between this one and chapter four but due to rules I will not post it here. If anyone is morbidly curious enough to seek it out, it can be found on my lj at www . livejournal . com / users / eloquencelost / 9748.html (just take the spaces out and you'll be fine!) Thank you very much for reading After the Rains and please remember to feed the Author as she has the known congenital illness of the Author Species known as Fragile Ego and reviews always brighten her day!

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Dawn had come and gone with neither Kakashi or Iruka noticing. 

Morning had come and was near gone by the time the sharp knocking on Kakashi's door finally roused either man and the jounin shot a grumpy look at the clock sitting on his nightstand. It read eleven and since even his sleep-fogged mind couldn't not notice the cheerful light peeking through the curtains, he could only decide it was in the morning.

Ugh….it was bright and he was tempted to drag the covers over his head again and snuggle up into the warm body curling into his own. It took Kakashi a moment to process the fact that there _was_ a warm body sleeping in his bed but he caught on quickly enough as memories from the previous night came back to him with a jolt. It was enough to waken him enough to actually recognize that the annoying knocks on his front door were indeed real and not a cruel figment of his imagination.

Another grumble could be heard as he unhappily uncurled himself from Iruka's body and grabbed up a robe which was carelessly thrown across a chair and stumbled to the door. He opened it with a yawn and a bleary rattle of locks to glower sullenly at Genma who stood there chewing impatiently on the senbon in his mouth. "wahya wan?" The arm that rose to cover his yawn also masked his face from view.

Translation: What do you want?

Genma smirked in amusement as Kakashi poked his head out the door and glowered at him. The silver-haired jounin's typically mussed hair was spectacularly mussed with a serious case of bedhead now and that seemed to amuse the darker haired jounin to no end. "Morning sunshine,"

Kakashi contemplated the effectiveness of flipping Genma off and slamming the door in his face but decided against it since that would take more effort then he was willing to exert this hour of the morning. "What. Do. You. Want?" There, with careful enunciation he even managed to make his irritation clear as he uttered those icy words with a tired scratch to his cheek. The sleeve of his robe now his hid face from view as those wild silver strands fell in complete disorder around that hidden visage.

The lack of warmth was what woke Iruka.

That and the murmur of voices out in the other room; he sleepily raised his head to look around blearily for Kakashi. When he didn't see the other man, he sat up with a huge yawn and rubbed sleepily at his still blurry eyes. "Kakashi?"

Both men missed his sleepy mutter as Kakashi leaned against the wall, propping his arm up against the door and waited for Genma to explain why he'd so rudely awakened him before the jounin gave into the urge to throw a kunai or two at the smirking Genma. A sleepy glare given to Genma then over the sleeve of that old robe as Kakashi yawned once more into the soft material.

"We got a mission. Seems like Iruka-sensei was kidnapped or something in the middle of the night." That had Kakashi perking up and he blinked in surprise as Genma continued. "Apparently he never showed up for class this morning and when someone went to go check on him, they found his paperwork strewn all over the place and his keys lying near the door. A neighbor says they heard him talking to someone but that's about all we know."

"Fuck me!" That loud proclamation from Kakashi's bedroom had both men looking back as a furious looking Iruka stormed from the room to the bathroom. "Why didn't you set the alarm? I'm so fucking late it defies words! And where are my clothes, Kakashi I want them back now, dammit!" Genma looked like someone had just hit him upside the head with a large stick or a brick.

Of course, the fact that Iruka had been as naked as the day he'd been born when he marched past might have had something to do with that. When the grumpy chuunin stormed from the bathroom again, his lower half thankfully covered in a towel, it was a small relief….though the suggestive rubbing of Iruka's rear was doing little to help Genma's already overwhelmed brain catch up.

"Gods my back is killing me, this is all your fault Kaka-" About that time, Iruka finally got a good look at his new lover and the surprised looking Genma standing in the doorway. "Awww… hell…." He squeaked and Iruka disappeared in the bedroom faster then Korean barbeque in front of Choji.

There was the soft chink of metal as the senbon fell to the ground as it slipped from Genma's lax and shocked mouth.

Kakashi merely smirked and covered his smirk with a pale hand while lazily leaning against the wall. "As you can see, Iruka-sensei is fine so I think you can go call off your manhunt, hmmn?"

Dazed and shocked green eyes looked to Kakashi and Genma numbly nodded before a slender hand rose to rub at his eyes. "Yeah….I'll uh…see you later…" And with that, the jounin was gone, both amused and shocked at what he'd just seen. It was prime and ripe gossiping material however and he quickly headed to find both Raidou and the rest of the shinobi ordered to track Iruka down.

This was better then when a shell-shocked Kotetsu had let slip that there was more going on between the new Hokage and a certain Frog Hermit!

Once Genma had left, Kakashi shut the door and strolled lazily back into his bedroom. The human-sized lump under his covers told Kakashi where his lover was and he sat on the edge of the bed with a chuckle to pat it gently. "Relax, Iruka. It would have gotten out eventually."

"Shut up, this is all your fault." That sulky mutter came from under the blankets and Kakashi lifted the covers to grin at the furiously blushing chuunin.

"Not my fault you came storming out into the hallway naked as a jaybird." Iruka just groaned and curled into a mortified ball.

"Oh Gods…I'm never going to live this down."

"If it's any consolation, the look on Genma's face was priceless…" He tried to draw Iruka into his arms though the sulky chuunin fought to squirm away. "I'd suggest you try and play it off like you fell asleep here because you lost your keys but I'm afraid because of the way you were…er…rubbing your ass I doubt anyone would believe it." Iruka shot him a disgruntled glare and sat up with a growl.

"It hurts dammit." Sadly, the pain in his rear was of no fault of Kakashi's, or rather, it wasn't his fault in the way it would no doubt be rumored however. Kakashi **had** been trying to grope him the night before after their steamy shower and _that_ had startled Iruka enough for the chuunin to slip and fall in the water on the floor…

That particular explanation lacked the juiciness of the rumors no doubt beginning to spread already thanks to a certain loud-mouthed senbon-chewing jounin

"How long till you think the Hokage hears….?" That chagrined and dismayed tone of voice compelled Kakashi to cup the side of Iruka's face and guide it up enough for him to kiss the chuunin.

"Oh I'd say about fifteen minutes. Get up and get dressed. We'll go explain what happened and try and salvage what little of your reputation still remains untarnished." Another lingering kiss and Iruka was more tractable as Kakashi pulled the covers back from that tanned form and moved so Iruka could scoot off the bed.

"Tarnished, huh?" A bemused smile was gifted to the jounin as Iruka crawled from the bed. Kakashi stepped outside long enough to fetch Iruka's now clean and dry uniform and he tossed the pile of clothes at his lover.

"Yep…don't worry, a few weeks in my company and I'll have sufficiently ruined your reputation. I'm a bad influence you know."

"I noticed. A day into things and you've already managed to make me late for work. "A chagrined look was tossed at the clock as he quickly yanked on his various under-things and uniform. For a man known for being lazy, Kakashi could get dressed in a hurry as well and he was done about the same time as Iruka though he'd yet to pull up the mask which would hide him from the rest of the world.

"Do you….regret last night?" Gods, that was harder to ask then he'd thought possible. Kakashi swallowed nervously and lied to himself by mentally stating that he didn't care either way. Sex was sex and while the sex had been great, it wasn't anything to get excited over…right? Iruka looked up in surprise as that hesitantly asked question met his ears. Those dark eyes were wide with shock and were anything but coy as he stared at Kakashi for an instant in flustered dismay.

"Are you kidding me?" Was it even possible for Iruka to lie about his feelings? It would appear the chuunin was either unable or unwilling to mask his intentions. It was oddly refreshing to watch the creep of color across his cheeks and know it wasn't some coy or planned attempt at innocence. "Look, you're annoying as hell sometimes and drive me up a wall but if you think I regretted what happened last night, you really are an idiot." That fierce reply was also oddly endearing and Kakashi found himself unwillingly charmed by that fiery comment and he swept in to kiss Iruka passionately in answer. The chuunin returned it just a passionately and by the time they parted, both were breathless and had all but forgotten their original intentions to seek out the Hokage.

"We…need to go." Kakashi panted out softly, his breath hot and moist across Iruka's lips as he tried to convince himself to break away from the desirable chuunin. Iruka nodded dazedly and stepped back with a sigh.

"Let's go…we can…er…continue this later. After I find my keys of course," Iruka raked a hand through his hair, finger-combing it out for lack of anything else…judging by Kakashi's unruly mop of silver hair, the chances of the jounin having a brush or a comb for that matter seemed slim to none.

"Oh? Didn't you hear? They found your keys near your doorstep apparently." Kakashi put in silkily with a mischievous smile as he drew up his mask. Iruka's eyes narrowed slightly and he eyed the jounin for a long moment though Kakashi merely smiled in that 'I'm so innocent' manner of his.

"You don't say." The doubting note in Iruka's voice only had Kakashi chuckling on the inside as he moved to capture his lover's hand in his own. "That's mighty convenient…"

"Isn't it though?" Kakashi wondered mildly as he drew Iruka towards the door and beyond. "Come on, Iruka, let's get to the Hokage and save what's left of your reputation." Now that they were outside of his apartment, Kakashi knew he wasn't allowed to be as openly affectionate with Iruka and as he locked the door behind him by clicking the lock, he squeezed the chuunin's hand on last time before letting it drop. Iruka looked around and when he saw the coast was clear, a gentle nuzzle found Kakashi's cheek before he drew back to a more acceptable distance.

"Did you grab your keys?"

"….oh shit….."

"You didn't….." Iruka could only stare at Kakashi with wide and disbelieving eyes. Kakashi laughed nervously and rubbed the back of his head in embarrassment. "You did….didn't you…" A chagrined look from the chuunin then as he shook his head. "Idiot…." This was said with an affectionate smile as wry amusement touched Iruka's eyes.

"But a lovable one, hmmn?"

"Heh,come on, we'll go see Tsunade-sama and then worry about getting you into your apartment. I think we should both invest in like a potted plant or something to hide a spare key under."

"Nah, oldest trick in the book…" Kakashi grinned and leaned an elbow on Iruka's shoulder as they walked towards the administrative building where Tsunade's office was. "Maybe you should give me a copy of the key so I can come molest you in the middle of the night…er…I mean watch it for you." That lascivious leer could be seen even through the thin material of Kakashi's mask and Iruka shoved him away with a snort.

"Pervert," Their affectionate teasing would last the entire trip to the Hokage's office and Kakashi silently acknowledged that the day had started out on a definite positive note.

Even if he had woken up before noon which was usually a check-mark in the negative column.

Of course, considering he'd woken up next to Iruka, that was bound to start the day off on a good step no matter what time he woke up and the silently promised himself to try and test that particularly theory tomorrow and as many days as it took to prove it to be either true or false.

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A disgusting amount of thanks goes to Telosphilos and Midorryu from the KakaIru LJ community and to all the other reviewers to commented, it is much appreciated and I shall see everyone in my next fanfiction! 


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